All I Want Is You
by disarranging
Summary: What if Joey didn't leave during Tanya's Hen Party? What if, instead, Lauren had run after him and convinced him to stay? An alternative take on what could have happened in the 2012 'Enders Christmas storyline. Lauren/Joey pairing. Multi-chapter fic.
1. Chapter 1

I stood in the corridor of the R&R, my mind reeling, a heavy weight on my heart. I didn't understand what had just happened. Joey claimed that it was over between us, that I had to forget him and move on with my life. And that would all be well and good if I believed him. It's just that every time he does this, every time he tries cuts me out like this, there's a look in his eyes that tells me that he doesn't believe the words himself. The connection between us crackles with attraction and the feeling created by his fingers against my face as he tucks my hair behind my ear completely negates the feeling created by his words.

I took a swig of vodka, trying to clear my head. I know mum had said something to Joey before and I wanted to know what it was. I was almost completely convinced they were keeping secrets from me, secrets that were keeping me and Joey apart. I wanted answers and I wanted them from the horse's mouth because if I was going to let a boy break my heart, I wanted a valid real reason for it.

Making my mind up, I set off up the stairs of the club after Joey. I was drunker than I had realised, my head swaying a bit as I reached the top. I saw Joey further ahead, about to turn into the gardens. I sped up thinking that I probably wouldn't reach him until he was at Gran's house to pack his stuff but as I made it to the gardens I spotted him on a bench, unmoving, head in his hands.

"Joey?" His head snapped up. I was shocked to see that his eyes looked wet.

He swallowed, rubbing his face slowly, his eyes shifting back down to the floor. "Can't you just leave it, eh, Lauren? Can't you just listen to me? For once?"

I took another step forward, attempting not to stagger as I did and rolling my eyes. "Yeah, see the thing is, Joey, I don't believe you. I don't accept your pathetic, non-explanation. I know you're lying to me. I know you're keeping secrets from me." I paused briefly before sitting down next to him. When he didn't say anything, I took his hand away from his face, holding it in own as I prompted him further. "You're obviously upset about something. Just tell me. "

"We can't do this," he mumbled, not looking up. He didn't try to take his hand back either, though.

I sighed exasperatedly. "I love you, Joey. And you loved me at one point, or so you said you did, so you still give me the impression you do every time I see you. I think I deserve a proper explanation."

He looked up slowly, a pained expression on his face. "I can't... We can't... It's too complicated."

"That doesn't mean anything."

"Lauren, I'm trying to protect you." He snatched his hand out of mine, standing up, his back turned away from me.

"By leaving me? By breaking my heart? By having secret conversations with my mum? And protecting me from what exactly?" Tears sprung into my eyes as anger and rejection spread through me.

He didn't reply, just stood frozen on the spot. The silence was excruciating. Realising I still was still holding the bottle of vodka from before, I started to gulp down what was left before Joey snatched it out of my hand.

"For god's sake, Lauren, drinking isn't the answer. You don't need this," he said angrily, emptying the remaining contents onto the floor before throwing the bottle onto the bench.

"Then what is the answer, Joey? What is it? Because it's you I need really, and I don't understand why I can't have you!" My voice had turned more to a shriek, tears pouring down my cheeks.

Joey turned round, the stony facade on his face dropping as he caught my gaze. He crouched in front of me slowly, reaching up to cup my face, wiping my tears away with his thumbs.

"Sshhh," he crooned softly. "Please don't do this. Please don't make this harder than it already is."

I just stared at him, feeling the fight draining from me, a numbness that only had a little to do with the alcohol starting to take over. Joey looked back at me, an internal battle raging in his eyes. We stayed this way for a while, only moving when I shivered, finally feeling the cold.

Joey stood up suddenly. Grabbing my hands he pulled me up and tucked me into his side. "C'mon, I'll take you home."

A small part of me wanted to say no, to say we weren't finished here, to keep demanding an explanation. But the cold and the tiredness were getting harder and harder to ignore and the more he refused to let me in, the deeper the knife was wedged in my heart. I leant into him heavily as we walked, hating myself for enjoying the feel of his strong arm around my waist, his warmth surrounding me.

I fumbled with my keys when we reached the door, sniffing and fighting the urge to start crying again. I expected him to turn and walk back down the steps once I was in the hallway however he walked in after me and closed the door behind us.

I looked up at him as I turned round to ask whether or not he was leaving when the tortured look on his face stopped me.

"Derek," he said simply, his voice low.

"What?" He reached out and tucked a strand of hair behind my ear as I tried to read from his gaze what he meant. He grazed his fingers slowly down from behind my ear to the base of my neck, cupping my cheek with his other hand.

"It's Derek I'm trying to protect you from. He threatened me, us, in the hospital, saying that if I didn't break up with you, if I didn't play the dutiful son, he would hand you over to the police. He wants me gone. He's even got your mum involved, trying to make her persuade me to leave and threatening that if I don't, he'll tell the police. What choice did I have?" He leant his forehead against mine softly. "I'm sorry, Lauren."

I closed my eyes, trying to process what he had just said. "So, it's not something I did wrong that's made you ignore me?" He shook his head gently, his forehead still against mine.

"And it's not because you don't love me anymore?" I whispered, scared of the answer despite having not doubted that he still loved me earlier on.

He shook his head again, his thumb stroking my cheek. I opened my eyes as he leaned back, a soft expression on his face. "This whole situation would be so much easier if I didn't, Lauren, but I do. I love you. I love you even though I shouldn't, for so many reasons."

I could feel my heart racing in my chest. "Do you mean that?" I asked, slightly breathless.

A small smile turned up the corner of his mouth. "Yes."

That was all the encouragement I needed. I closed the gap between us, my lips meeting his passionately. My hands raked through his hair as he reciprocated the kiss, his muscular shoulders forming a cage around me, gently pushing me backwards until my back hit the wall. One of his hands supported the back of my head, his fingers tangled in my hair, the other slid down to my waist, applying delicious pressure to my side.

I groaned into the kiss, both of us pushing to get closer to the other. My fingers found the buttons of his shirt and began to undo them. He slid his arms down my body and, reaching the top of my thighs, picked me up. I wrapped my legs around his waist as his lips travelled down my neck. He moved us into the living room, dropping down onto the sofa, me still straddling his hips, his lips never leaving my body. My hips moved of their own accord, grinding closer to his own, making him groan as his hands slipped to my waist. He snuck one hand under my top, splaying his fingers over my stomach and sending a thrill through me. The other rested on my lower back, encouraging me to move closer.

"I've missed this," Joey mumbled, punctuating each word with a kiss along my collar bone. "I've missed you. So much."

"Me too," I agreed, my lips feathering his forehead. He started to lift my top slowly and I could feel myself getting carried away. The thrill of him finally being here, being with me, was so intoxicating. But I had to get one thing straight before we went too far.

"Joey," I half mumbled, half groaned, as his lips captured my own again. I pushed on his broad shoulders when he didn't reply and repeated myself. "Joey."

He leant back slightly, looking at me with a question in his bright eyes. His hair was a mess, his lips swollen and the top buttons of his shirt undone, revealing his impeccable chest. He looked fucking sexy. A prolonged moment of silence occurred as we both fought to catch our breath when I suddenly swung my hand back and slapped him hard on the face.

"What was the hell that for?!" He demanded, grabbing both my hands in one of his own before I could hit him again, his other gripping my side under my top. I sat shocked at myself for a second before finding the words I needed.

"Because I'm angry with you, Joey! For leaving me when you still loved me! For listening to Derek of all people! For not talking to me about things that concern me!" My chest heaved as I spoke, an amazing sense of relief spreading through me. I gently pulled one of my hands free and laid it across his solid chest over his heart. I could feel his rapid heartbeat. I smiled slyly. "And also a little bit for being so infuriatingly attractive all the time," I added, pecking his lips briefly.

For a moment he merely stared at me, a shocked expression on his face. Finally he moved, his hands coming up to my face and holding it still, locking my gaze with his.

"I'm sorry," he said seriously.

I turned my face in his hands, my lips brushing his palm. "I know." He swallowed, his eyes turning sad.

"How do I make it right? I don't know what to do, Lauren."

I moved so that I was no longer straddling him but was curled up in his lap instead, resting my head on his chest. His arms came around me, his chin resting atop of my head. "You stay, Joey. You choose me."

We sat quietly for a while, enjoying being in each other's company after the weeks apart; the passion from earlier subdued for now.

"What about Derek? What about everyone else?"

"I don't care about everyone else," I said simply.

He wound a strand of my hair round his finger slowly. "And Derek?"

I sighed heavily. I didn't know what to do about Derek. There was no saying he would actually go to the police and there was no saying they would believe him even if he did. Establishing this, however, caused more problems than it solved. As for mum, it hurt that, even after seeing how upset I was, she hadn't told me about Derek threatening her and Joey. She'd let me believe that Joey didn't love me anymore. I could appreciate that her intentions, like Joey's, were good, but I was sick of feeling like my life was being controlled by Derek.

"I don't know. But how long can he get away with all this manipulating?"

"I don't know, babe. I don't know." He pressed a kiss to the top of my head.

I sat up, my arms sliding round his neck, his holding my waist gently. "Promise me we deal with whatever's gonna happen together."

He held my gaze, a worried look in his eyes. "I'm scared I'll lose you, Lauren."

"You won't lose me."

"You can't know that. You don't know what he's like. You don't know how far he'll go to hurt people."

"Which exactly is why we need each other, Joey."

He pressed a lingering kiss to my lips. "I love you."

"I love you too."

Just as I was about to lean in for another kiss we heard the front door open. I stood up, pulling Joey up with me as he buttoned his shirt back up. I could hear mum say something about Derek as the door to the living room opened.

"Lauren! Thanks for telling me you were coming home, by the way," Mum said, rolling her eyes as she started to root around in her handbag. "Probably best you weren't there though, turns out Derek's been having an affair with Kat and-" She stopped mid sentence, finally looking up properly and noticing Joey was in the room.

"What are you doing here?" Mum shot Joey a meaningful look.

"Tanya, listen-" Joey began but I interrupted, a wave of the anger I felt before returning.

"He's not leaving," I said sharply, entwining my fingers with Joey's. "I don't care what Derek, or anyone else for that matter, thinks. We're together. I love him and he loves me."

"You what?"

Our three heads snapped round in unison as my dad stepped into the room, slamming the door shut behind him, a livid look on his face.


	2. Chapter 2

A few minutes, a lot of pushing and pulling and a glass of whiskey later, we had managed to coax Dad into sitting down and had promised to explain everything as long as he promised not to overreact. Me and Joey sat on the sofa, hand-in-hand, his arm brushing against mine. Mum stood opposite us, shooting daggers at us from the corner of her eye.

"Well?" Dad prompted, taking a large sip of the whiskey. "Go on then, Lauren. Enlighten me."

"We love each other," I said bluntly. I wasn't going to beat around the bush. I was going to fight for what I wanted. I tried to get Dad to meet my gaze but he was staring at Joey.

"Bullshit, Lauren. He's your cousin." He leant forward so as to look directly in Joey's face and grabbed his forearm, a grimace curling his mouth. "Taking advantage of my daughter, are you? Messing about with her whilst living under my roof, telling her you love her so you can sleep with her?"

Joey didn't flinch at my Dad's words. Instead he pulled his arm free from Dad's grip, squeezed my hand and angled himself so that he was directly facing my Dad.

"I know what it looks like, Max. And I don't blame you for reacting like this; I'd probably react the same way were it my daughter. But before I explain everything, let's get one thing straight." Joey's voice was deep and compelling. "I would never, ever take advantage of Lauren. This isn't some one-sided relationship; neither of us forced the others' hand. We just fell in love by accident. We didn't mean for it to happen; we even tried to ignore it but-"

"Well you didn't do a very good job did you?" My mum spat, glaring at Joey. "Have you already forgotten what I said to you before? Or are you really stupid enough to think that Derek won't follow through on his threats?"

Dad turned to look at Mum, an incredulous look on his face. "Wait. What threats? And you knew about this? Derek knew about this?!"

Mum was silent for a moment before she sighed heavily and nodded. Tears were filling her eyes as she started to speak. "Derek... He's been threatening me for weeks. Threatening Joey, too. Lauren was so upset but he wanted me to make Joey leave. He said he'd tell the police if they stayed together, if he didn't leave."

Dad stood up angrily, pouring himself another glass of whiskey. Mum wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, remaining where she was and watching Dad with a look of apprehension. Dad was silent for a good minute just staring straight ahead. He downed the whiskey, placed both his hands on the edge of the sideboard and spoke in a low, menacing voice. "Tell the police what?"

Mum's eyes snapped to me, she nodded slightly. I could feel Joey's eyes on me too, rubbing the side of my hand with his thumb. I stole myself for a second before answering. "Tell them it was me." My voice was barely more than a whisper.

"What was you?" Dad asked, still not looking at me, his knuckles white from the strength of his grip on the sideboard.

I could feel my lip wobbling as I went to speak, tears forming in the corners of my eyes. "I crashed the car into that shop. It was me driving. Not Joey." I looked up to see he had turned towards me, shock and disappointment clear in his eyes. "I'm sorry, Dad."

I closed my eyes against the onslaught of emotion I was feeling. It was a relief to finally say the words, but horrifying to have it hit home how much of a serious mess this situation was. Joey's arms went around me, pulling me towards him so that for the second time that night I was curled into his chest. He crooned soothing words into my ear, his hand rubbing my back comfortingly.

I could hear Dad move back over to the armchair and sit down with a sigh, one finger tapping steadily against his glass. He gave me a minute to calm down before speaking again.

"So where does my brother come into this?"

"He gave me an ultimatum whilst we were still in the hospital," Joey explained. "He said that if I didn't play the dutiful son to him he would change his statement and tell the police Lauren was driving. I refused to do that so he said the only way I could be sure he would keep his mouth shut would be to leave Lauren." He pressed a kiss to the top of my head. "I had to break her heart to protect her."

Dad digested that information and turned to look at Joey, eyes narrowed. "Then what the hell are you still doing here?"

Joey sighed. "Because Lauren's right, Max. I can't stay away from her. It's making us both miserable. And besides, how long can we let Derek manipulate everyone's lives? It's got to stop somewhere. If he changes his statement, we'll have to hope the fact that he's an ex-con will help my statement stand up in court."

"Is this really why you've been so upset lately, Lauren?" Dad asked me.

I nodded, sniffing. "I love him, Dad. And I know we're cousins but we don't see each other as cousins, we never did. We met as two strangers who were attracted to each other at first sight. We didn't know we were cousins, not right away. And, like Joey said, we tried to ignore our feelings but we just...couldn't. We tried to be careful about it but Derek found out about us and threatened me. He threatened to tell you and Mum, to tell everyone. So we were gonna run away. And that's when we crashed and it all went wrong from there..." My voice trailed off, my hands fisting into Joey's shirt as I cried.

Dad watched us for a long while. I watched as various expressions flitted over his face. Confusion, anger, sadness, and, when watching how tenderly Joey was holding me, I thought I saw a hint of resignation.

"You can't help who you fall in love with, Max," Joey said quietly.

Dad didn't respond for a long time. A strange look had washed over his face; it was like he wasn't in the room anymore. Seizing an opportunity and taking confidence from the fact that he hadn't tried to kill either of us yet, I ventured to ask the most important question.

"Are you going to tell the police, Dad? Or Derek?"

He rubbed his hands over his face. Looking up at both me and Joey he offered a very small, but very significant, to me at least, smile. "No, Lauren, of course I'm not."

I felt Joey release a breath he had obviously been holding. "What are we going to do though?" I continued.

Dad stood up, walked over to mum and put his arm around her shoulders. "You leave Derek to me. He's caused enough upset in one night for a whole lifetime."

"But what are you going to do?" I asked, hugging closer to Joey.

"I'll tell you what we're going to do. We're going to go to bed, get some sleep. And in the morning me and your mum are going to get married and then we're going to have a wonderful Christmas and you are not going to worry about Derek, alright?"

I stared up at him as my mum moved forward. "You're serious? You're going to let them still be together despite everything that's on the line?"

"Well, it's not exactly my dream, Tan, is it? My daughter falling in love with a boy whose father happens to be my manipulating ex-con of a brother, but what can I do? Tear them apart and wait for the call to say Lauren's been taken into hospital to have her stomach pumped?" Joey flinched at this, pulling his arms tighter around me, whispering an apology in my ear. "Having said that, knowing Lauren, she could probably do a lot worse than Joey Branning. I'm not happy about this, far from it. But if he makes her happy, who am I to spoil it?"

Mum looked a little gobsmacked, but at least she didn't look angry anymore. "And what if Derek goes to the police?"

"He won't," Dad answered simply. The tone of his voice and the look on his face invited no further questions. "Get some sleep, yeah? We've got a big day tomorrow." He kissed Mum briefly on the lips before walking over to me and bringing my chin up and studying my face for a moment.

I looked up at him, hoping to convey how relieved I was through my gaze. "Thank you." I said quietly.

He nodded and dropped my chin. Turning to Joey, he made to move as if to put a hand on his shoulder before changing his mind and letting it drop back to his side. "If you hurt her again..."

Joey held his gaze, speaking in a clear, strong voice. "I won't, Max. I promise."

Dad nodded again, and left the room. Mum stood for a second and then left the room, claiming that she had to start getting stuff ready for tomorrow before she went to bed. Me and Joey remained on the sofa, reflecting on what had just happened.

"How are we still alive, Joey?"

He let out a short, relieved laugh, pecking my lips softly. "No idea. I don't think the drama's over yet, though."

The way he was looking at me, the way his presence made me feel, helped me know that what we were fighting for was worth it. I could see that he was as scared as I was, but I knew we could get through anything as long as we did it together. I would have scoffed if you had told me I would think like that not all that long ago, but finally experiencing that sort of connection to someone taught me to have a little more trust. I knew it wasn't going to be easy, but then it was hard to remember a time when anything had been.

I reached up and placed my hand over his cheek. "Sorry I hit you. Again," I admitted.

He tilted his head to the side and pressed a hot, openmouthed kiss to the inside of my wrist, sending a spark up my arm. "I forgive you. Again," he added, grinning at me. "Good shot as always, Miss Branning."

I giggled lowly, moving so that my knees were either side of his thighs, my head slightly above his. "In my defence, you deserved it. Both times."

"I did," he agreed, bringing my face down to his and capturing my lips with his.

The door opened suddenly as Mum returned, Abi behind her, and both carrying boxes full of even more wedding stuff.

"Ugh. Lauren!" Abi turned her face away from us, dropping the box onto the table.

"Abi, it's-" I began, but she cut across me, still averting her eyes even though I had already moved away from Joey, only our hands remaining connected.

"Don't bother; Mum told me. And just so you know, I'm completely weirded out by this. I mean, I knew you got on well but I didn't think you got on, y'know, _that_ well."

I flashed a smile at Joey before speaking. "Oh, come on, Abs, it's not like you and Jay don't get on _that_ well."

Mum swivelled round, a look of shock on her face. "What?!"

Abi sneered at me. "Don't listen to her, Mum. We haven't done anything. Yet." She blushed, her eyes catching Joey's as she realised what she'd said and rolling her eyes as she caught me laughing at her. "And at least Jay isn't my cousin!"

I shrugged, letting the comment slide off me, figuring I'd better get used to it. "Touché," I said, snuggling into Joey's side and flicking on the TV with the remote.

"Are you going to help me and Abi get this stuff ready or are you still allergic to weddings, Lauren?" Mum asked as she moved to hang the dresses up.

"Still allergic," I remarked, not even looking up at them, swinging my legs over Joey's so as to get comfier.

Mum rolled her eyes. "Well you'll have to get over it for tomorrow."

I sent an affirmative grunt in her direction before reaching to bring Joey's ear closer to my lips. "I might need some distracting to take my mind off of it," I whispered, arching an eyebrow suggestively at him.

He smirked at me "Is that so?" he whispered, running a finger over the small strip of bare skin on my stomach where my top had ridden up.

My mum cleared her throat loudly and we broke our gaze. I rested my head on his chest once more, his arms locking securely round my waist.

We watched TV for about an hour whilst my mum and Abi bustled around. It felt so nice to just sit and have Joey next to me after all the time apart. I could feel the emotional stress of the day catching up with me. My eyelids were getting heavier and heavier, the TV screen blurring in my vision. The steady rise and fall of Joey's chest was luring me to sleep. I let my eyes drop shut and buried my face deeper into his shirt.

The next thing I knew I could feel myself being moved. I cracked my eyes open, my head lolling slightly on Joey's muscular shoulder.

"Joey?" I asked, my words slurred with tiredness.

"Sshhh." He pressed a feather-light kiss to my forehead. "Go back to sleep; I've got you."

I felt him lower me onto my bed, pulling the covers up around me. He leant down to kiss me softly, his lips meeting mine sweetly. I wound my arms loosely round his neck, holding his face to mine so as to prolong the kiss. He rested his weight on his elbows, his forearms on my pillow on either side of my head, one hand cradling the top of my head, the other cupping my face.

"Don't want you to go," I mumbled.

I felt Joey smile against my lips. "You can barely keep your eyes open."

"What's your point?" I quipped back.

He pecked my lips and lifted himself away from me. "Go to sleep, Lauren. I'll see you tomorrow, alright?"He gave me one last kiss and gently tucked a strand of hair behind my ear. I heard my bedroom door shut as I drifted off to sleep.

**A/n.**

Thank you to those of you who left me some lovely reviews. :) I'll try and get the next chapter up asap. I will unfortunately have to spend some time on an essay too though (boo). See you in the next few days!


	3. Chapter 3

I woke up slowly, thankful that when I rolled over to look at the clock my head didn't spin with the beginnings of a hangover. It was half eleven; I should probably have been up earlier considering the wedding started at two. I looked round to see that Abi, ever the organised one, was setting all her stuff for the wedding out on her bed. After grumbling a good morning in her direction and using the bathroom, I made my way downstairs.

As I neared the kitchen I heard voices issuing from inside. The door was slightly ajar and I could see my mum, dressing gown on, rollers in her hair, cup of tea in hand, sitting at the kitchen table, obviously facing someone.

"The thing is, Joey, you don't exactly have the most savoury of reputations do you?"

At Joey's name my ears perked up. Breathing in sharply I pulled my hand back from the door handle. In memory, everything that had happened between me and Joey last night felt like years ago. But emotionally I still felt a little raw.

I heard Joey sigh before he answered. "I can't change what I was like in the past, Tanya. I'm not proud of how I treated people."

I watched as Mum took a sip of her tea, glad she still hadn't noticed me. "Is it worth it though this time, Joey? All this drama, all this upset. You know people aren't just going to accept your relationship with open arms; they're going to scrutinize you both."

"You think we don't know that? You think we've not known that from the very beginning?" Joey replied. I could practically see the muscles in his jaw twitching through the door as they always do when he's upset.

"What I mean is," Mum continued, "are you prepared to fight through it all? If I'm to accept the two of you properly, I need to know that you're not going to string her along for a bit and then change your mind when times get hard - even if you do it to protect her." Mum stood up, moving to the sink and placing her mug down on the side. She turned back to face Joey and I flattened myself against the wall of the hallway so that she didn't see me. "I know full well I've got no right to act as dictator when it comes to relationships, what with my track record, but Lauren's not as strong as she comes across. She needs someone who can handle her, look after her; take the drama and the stubbornness with the vulnerability at the same time."

Joey was quiet for a while. I could feel my heart beat against my ribs. "She's worth it," he stated firmly, my mum watching him silently. "We're in too deep to turn back now. I thought we weren't. I thought I could let her go but... All I could think about was her, all the time. I kept seeing her face when I told her we had to call it off, hearing her voice, and it was killing me. Even if she hadn't run after me yesterday I would only have come running back to her sooner or later. It was Lauren who called me out on being an idiot, you know. She makes me feel like a better person..." He trailed off, sounding embarrassed.

I could see my mum smiling, her hand over her heart. She laughed softly. "I'm sorry, Joey. I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable." She paused, considering Joey for a moment. "You make her better too, you know. I noticed it, without realising it was because of you obviously, before the accident; she was happier, she wasn't drinking herself stupid." There was a long silence before she continued. "I'm sorry I kept you apart. When you came to see her after the accident, I should've followed my instincts rather than Derek's instructions."

"You were protecting her," Joey said understandingly.

Mum nodded. "I'm still sorry." She then started to walk towards the door. "Right. I've got to get ready. Are you coming to the wedding still?"

"Err, I assumed I wasn't invited anymore but I guess I could go if you want me there," Joey stuttered slightly.

"Well, I can think of someone who'll be disappointed if you're not. Besides, I could use a strapping lad like you to help Max shift some stuff over to the venue. He likes to think he's invincible but I know for a fact he's doing his back in moving all those crates backwards and forwards."

I decided to come out of my hiding place before Mum opened the door properly. "What are you using my boyfriend for?" I asked as I walked into the kitchen.

Mum smiled at me and Joey winked from his seat at the table. "Morning, darling," Mum said, kissing me on the cheek. "Just telling Joey he should come to the wedding. I don't think your dad will mind; you've always had him wrapped around your little finger. Make sure you start getting ready soon," she added as she left the room.

I stood for a second, both of us regarding each other, testing the waters. He offered me a small smile. "Hey," he said, reaching out a hand and pulling me towards him. His hands gripped my waist, bringing me to a stop between his sweatpant-covered legs. I slid my arms around his neck, kissing him softly.

"Hey," I raked my fingers through the short hair at the back of his neck. "Is that true what Mum just said?"

"Which part?"

"You came to see me? After the accident?" His eyes softened.

"I was worried about you," he said sincerely as he sifted a loose piece of hair from my face.

I sighed wistfully, thinking back to those days I had sat in this very kitchen, crying over a broken heart and fighting endless hangovers with more alcohol. And all the time he had loved me. Whoever said love makes you a fool was right.

"We wasted so much time," I said, taking his hand from my face and holding it in my own.

"We'll make up for it."

"Oh yeah?" I bit my lip, teasing him a little bit as I shimmied closer to him. "I'm gonna hold you to that."

Joey smirked at me, the hand that wasn't held in mine hand slipping lower until it was cupping my bum. "That's what I'm counting on, babe."

I flashed him a grin before stepping out of his grip and pouring myself some tea. "So," I began as I turned round to face him, curling my fingers round the warm mug. "I get to see you in a suit today, do I?"

"You might even get to see me out of it if you play your cards right," he said, a trademark twinkle in his eyes.

I sniggered, hoping to fight the blush I felt was threatening to bloom across my face. "How do you know I even want you to get your kit off? You're very confident for someone who should be grovelling for my forgiveness right about now." I was grinning at him so that he knew I was joking.

"And you're very red for someone who supposedly keeps her cool at all times and is above being affected by any kind of emotional or romantic situation and definitely does _not_ want me out of my kit."

I took a sip of my tea, chocking back a laugh and narrowing my eyes at him playfully whilst wishing I'd chosen a cold drink instead of boiling hot tea. "It's just my wedding allergies is all..." I sniffed, holding my head up high.

Joey got up and started to stalk towards me around the kitchen table, nodding with a mock sympathetic look on his face. "Makes my face red..." I continued, my breath catching as he came to a halt in front of me, his head above mine, his broad chest and shoulders obstructing my view of anything but him. "Gives me a high temperature..." My voice was barely more than a whisper now.

He leaned down, gently prising the mug out of my hands and placing it on the side, his breath hot in my ear as he spoke. "You should really see someone about that then."

"Probably," I croaked, my eyes rolling back into my head as he sucked on a particularly sensitive spot on the side of my neck, a soft mewl escaping my lips.

Suddenly he gripped my waist tightly and lifted me up so that I was sat on the edge of the counter. I captured his lips with my own fiercely, pulling him towards me. He shifted my knees apart, moving to stand between them. One of his hands tangled deeply into my hair, the other gripped my side tightly, his thumb stroking dangerously close to my breasts. I gripped the lapels of his jacket as I swung my legs around his waist, forcing myself even closer to him and making is both groan at the contact. I ran my fingers through his hair, scraping his scalp with my nails. His lips leaving mine briefly as we both gasped for air, he loosened the tie of my dressing gown and let the left shoulder of it fall to my elbow.

"Fuck, Lauren," he growled, his eyes dark with passion. "Are you completely naked under this?"

"Wouldn't you like to know," I teased breathlessly before recapturing his lips. He reciprocated the kiss with a roughness that reminded me of the first few times we'd been together; lust-induced and carnal.

He cupped the back of my neck with one hand, holding me still whilst his lips travelled down my neck torturously slowly. I bucked my hips against his as his other hand gripped my now bare shoulder, almost so as to restrain himself from letting it do anything else. It was as I was about to urge him to move it when I remembered where we were.

"Joey," I mumbled against the side of his head as his lips continued to devour my neck. "Joey, we have to stop; we can't do this in here."

He groaned deeply, his breathing fast, his lips hovering over the hollow of my neck. I ran my hands up and down his arms, feeling the muscles straining under his jacket. Letting my legs drop from around him I slid down off the counter into the narrow space between Joey and the worktop, my body tight against his. He dropped his forehead onto mine and watched me, his eyes still filled with lust. I reached up and placed a chaste kiss on his lips as he straightened up my dressing gown.

"I better go get ready," I said, pouting a little bit.

"That's probably a good idea," he replied, his voice gravelly. The corner of his mouth pulled up into a small smile. "Are you distracted enough for the wedding now then?"

I smirked at him. "For now," I said as I grabbed his hand, leading him down the hallway. Stopping by the door, I slid my arms around his waist, kissing him softly. "See you later."

Joey nodded, returning my kiss. "Love you," he whispered against my lips.

"Love you too." Just as I was moving away we heard voices coming up the steps outside.

"Joy," I mumbled, rolling my eyes as the unmistakable tones of my uncle Derek came closer and closer to the door along with my dad and Uncle Jack.

"Just ignore him," Joey said, giving me one last kiss. "I'll see you later."

I watched as Joey left, exchanging a short greeting with my dad as he went, before running up to the top of the stairs and stopping for a moment.

"It's interesting that you're choosing to include him, Max, when I warned you not to," I heard Derek say in a sarcastic tone. "Especially considering who I could choose to include, should I want to."

"Is that another threat?" Dad asked angrily.

"Leave it out, yeah, Derek?" Uncle Jack said as the living room door shut behind them.

I stood for a second, confused, before Mum called me, telling me to get ready.

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The wedding service ended up going well. Everyone got to the wedding on time, nobody interrupted the vows and, most amazingly of all, nobody died. Throughout the service I kept catching Joey's eye and sneaking greedy glances him when he wasn't looking. He certainly hadn't disappointed on the suit front; his bad-boy looks translating nicely into a crisp black number. I also noticed that, when he wasn't watching me or the actual ceremony, he was shooting suspicious looks in Derek's direction. To me, Derek merely looked his usual dangerously apathetic self. I raised my eyebrow at Joey at one point to try and get an inclination as to what the problem was but he just shook his head minutely.

It was a good hour later before I managed to get him on his own in the deserted corridor that connected the function room to the back of the venue.

"You look good." I said, trying not to sound too pathetically mesmerized as I came to stop in front of him, one hand resting on his chest.

"I aim to please," he said, smiling. He ran his index finger slowly from the arch of my eyebrow down to my chin, pressing on my bottom lip lightly with his thumb. "You look stunning, Lauren."

I tried not to prickle with nervous embarrassment, my cheeks reddening. "Yeah, sure."

"I'm serious," he murmured quietly, tucking my hair behind my ear, as per his usual habit. "That allergic reaction really becomes you."

I laughed, grateful that he hadn't taken offence to my phobia of compliments unless they're delivered in a non-serious way. "Thanks," I whispered, closing the gap between us so as to kiss him. His hands moved to my waist, pushing me backwards until my back was against the wall. My fingers clenched around the collar of his shirt, deepening our kiss. He pushed one of his legs between mine, my dress starting to bunch up slightly. I curled one of my hands round the back of his head, as he flattened one of his against my stomach. I released a low moan that was muffled by his mouth and he growled back in respone.

Suddenly, he pulled his lips away from mine, turning his head sharply. I gasped, my hands dropping from Joey's chest as I saw that there was someone else in the corridor.

Derek's lip curled maliciously. "Well, well, well. Isn't this cosy?"

**A/n**

So, things are heating up a bit more for Joey and Lauren now that we've got the preliminaries out of the way. I would apologise for the sneaky ending and the fact that I keep interrupting their shenanigans...but I'm not really sorry. Don't worry though, they'll get some time alone soon enough. Thank you for reading and thank you for the lovely reveiws - I really appreciate them. :)


	4. Chapter 4

Joey's arm snaked around my waist, pulling me into his side and angling his body so that he was slightly in front of me, his stance protective. I pressed my face into his shoulder, my hands clasping together around his waist.

"Back to this again are we, eh, Derek?" Joey said, scathingly sarcastic.

Derek smiled menacingly as he sauntered closer to us. "It's funny how things turn out isn't it, Joseph?"

"Just get to the point; I'm really not in the mood for one of your soliloquies." I looked up to see Joey's jaw locked and his eyes angry.

"Of course, son," Derek said, nodding, his eyes narrowed. "See, as I remember it, I told you to leave young Lauren here alone. I told you to leave her alone otherwise I would have to tell the police the truth about that little spot of trouble she got you both into." He inclined his head toward me, leering slightly. I glared back at him, Joey's fingers gripping my waist tightly.

"And yet here we are," Derek continued, stepping closer still. "Even after he broke your heart simply because I told him to. Must feel nice to know that he cares more for his reputation than for your happiness."

"Shut it, Derek," Joey growled threateningly. "I left her to protect her from you, you worthless piece of scum."

"Now, now, Joseph. You've been no angel yourself. I think before you call me scum you should take a look in the mirror, shaking up with this easy little slut of a cousin." Derek's hand shot out as if to grab my arm but Joey was faster, grabbing Derek's wrist in a vice-like grip and pushing me fully behind him.

"You don't touch her. Ever," Joey spat, each word punctuated with his anger.

"Oi!" I spun round as my dad ran down the corridor, taking in the scene before him. "What's going on here?"

Joey dropped Derek's arm, pushing him away as if poisoned as he did. "Derek was just leaving," he explained through gritted teeth. I ran a hand up his back slowly, feeling his tense muscles ripple at the contact.

Derek shook his arm slightly, straightening himself up and plastering a slick look back onto his face. "Evening, Max. Just having a pleasant conversation with my son and niece here."

"That's your idea of a pleasant conversation is it?" I snapped at him. "Threatening us again?"

"Is that true?" Dad asked in a low voice.

Derek narrowed his eyes."Well, come on now, Maxwell, surely you don't disagree that they both need teaching a lesson in respect?"

Dad suddenly lunged forward, pushing Derek against the wall, one finger pressed into his chest. "I thought I made myself very clear, Derek. You threaten my family again and that's it. That's the end." I'd never seen my dad look so furious before.

Joey placed a firm hand on Dad's shoulder. "Leave it, Max. Don't let him ruin your night; he's not worth it."

Dad snarled at Derek, opening his mouth to speak again when Oscar ran round the corner suddenly. He stopped short when his eyes fell on Dad still holding Derek up against the wall and Joey's protective stance in front of me.

"Lozzi?" He looked up at me worriedly, still frozen on the spot in the middle of the corridor. Dad lowered his arms, giving Derek a warning look before turning to face Oscar.

"Go back inside the party, Oscar." Dad said, trying to offer him an encouraging smile. Derek meanwhile started to make his way towards the door. At the same time, Joey relaxed his posture, letting go of Dad's shoulder and turning back to me, cupping my cheek briefly as I held my hand out for Oscar to take.

"You've made a big mistake, Max," Derek said as he reached the exit.

Dad just stood, rubbing one hand over his face, a concerned look on his face. Sensing that he needed a moment alone, I motioned to Joey that we should leave.

Joey nodded, throwing one last dubious look at the exit through which Derek had just left before swinging Oscar up into his arms. "C'mon then, little man. Let's go back inside." I smiled at him, relieved and thankful that it seemed as though he hadn't let Derek get to him too much. He gave me a poignant look over the top of Oscar's head. "You know everything he said was rubbish, don't you?"

I reached up on my tip toes and pecked a quick kiss on his cheek. "I know, baby."

An hour later, the party was in full swing and we'd thankfully seen no sign of Derek since the incident in the corridor. Dad had rejoined the group seemingly in a good mood once again, only I did see him check his phone rather a lot more than was perhaps conventional. Thinking no more on this however, I was determined to enjoy the night and make the most of the free bar.

"What's with you?" Whitney asked me as soon as Joey, Fatboy and Tyler had gone to bring in another round. Lucy and Alice all turned to face me. "Last time I saw you it was a miracle if we managed to get a word out of you, nevermind a smile. Tonight you're like a completely different person!"

I rolled my eyes, stirring the ice around my empty glass with my straw. "Is that a bad thing or something?"

"It's not bad," Lucy joined in, leaning over the table. "It's just...different?"

"Well I'm just having a good time, aren't I?" I replied, watching as Joey started to make his way back over to us.

"And would a guy have anything to do with that?" Whitney hedged, smirking at me.

"Ugh." I didn't want to lie but I wasn't ready to tell the truth either. "Maybe?"

I was nervous about how far they were going to push me tonight on this topic. I didn't want to hide mine and Joey's relationship for much longer as I felt the sooner it was out in the open the better. But I kind of wanted it to be our little thing just for a bit longer, before all the drama exploded. And besides, I didn't want to steal any thunder from Mum and Dad's wedding, even if it was their second.

"Alright, ladies?" Joey asked as he reached the table with Tyler and Fatboy. He placed a drink in front of me and Alice before sitting down next to me with his own beer and draping his arm casually over the back of my chair.

"Lauren was just about to tell us more about this new feller she's got," Whitney said, smirking as she clinked her glass with Lucy's.

I laughed sarcastically, giving both of them the evil eye. "Err, I definitely wasn't."

I didn't dare look at Joey; a very, very, very small part of me was still worried that, even though he loved me - and I knew he did now - once people started to ask questions and pick at our relationship he would balk realised that this wasn't what he wanted.

"Oh, come on, Lauren." Lucy prodded, "Spill! He must be impressive if he's caused such a drastic change in Miss My Life Is Terrible."

"Seriously, guys! Mind your own business!" I tried to make my voice stay cool but I think it just ended up sounding more like pleading. I felt Joey move his arm slightly closer to me over the back of my chair as, unseen by the rest of the group, he began to strum his thumb gently but tantalisingly up and down the back of my neck, sending goosebumps along my spine. I couldn't be sure what he meant by the gesture but I took it as a sign to say calm down; a way of telling me that he wasn't panicking or thinking of ways to back out.

"Aww, leave her, guys; she's blushing," Alice cooed, smiling at me before turning to Fatboy. "C'mon, Fatboy, carry on telling us about your plans for you and Poppy tomorrow."

I watched as Fatboy's eyes lit up as he launched into his story, successfully regaining everyone's attention for the time being. I threw a grateful look in Alice's direction before picking up my drink and taking a long sip. I could feel Joey's eyes on me before he leaned forward and whispered in my eye, his thumb stilling on the back of my neck.

"You okay?" I nodded in response, exhaling slowly.

"Not ready yet," I mumbled out of the corner of my mouth before turning to face him properly. He smiled and nodded in agreement, his eyes understanding. We shared a lingering look before breaking apart from each other, realising how close we'd gotten. As I looked back round, trying to pick up the flow of conversation again I noticed Lucy watching me and Joey with an odd look on her face. I managed to catch her eye and raised an eyebrow at her but her only reaction was to turn away quickly and immerse herself back into the group conversation.

I eventually relaxed back into my chair once more, resting my head in the crook of Joey's elbow, feeling properly calm for the first time all day. I was pleased to find that Lucy's possible suspicion about me and Joey didn't really bother me that much. I'd dealt with much worse than Lucy Beale before now.

At the end of the night I went over to Mum and Dad as Joey went to get our coats. "I'm going to Joey's, alright?"

"It's not really alright, no, Lauren" Dad slurred a little, his arm around Mum's shoulders.

"Okay, great," I said, wrinkling my nose sarcastically. "I wasn't really bothered either way."

Mum patted his chest lightly, smiling at me. "You are coming back in the morning for Christmas Day aren't you? Oscar will want you there. Bring Joey if you want to," she added.

For a second I was shocked it was Christmas Day already; the extent of my subdued feeling-sorry-for-myself-ness becoming very apparent. "Yeah, of course I'll be there." I returned her smile before turning to meet Joey who was waiting for me by the door.

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Closing the front door behind us, we were pleased to find an empty house. Poppy must have decided to stay over at Fatboy's and Gran was nowhere to be found. I suddenly felt irrationally nervous. It's not like we hadn't been together before, but it had never really felt this serious. Before it had been fun and dangerous and, while I guess it still was both of those things, there was definitely a new layer of expectation and responsibility added to the mix. We were both silent for a moment before I felt Joey take my hand and lead me upstairs.

Reaching his room, he shut the door quietly behind me, his eyes on my face, his right hand still resting on the door just to the side of my face. He took my hand in his left one, lowering his head until it was level with mine. "Hey," he said as I finally met his eyes.

I tried to breathe normally, tried to tell myself to calm down but, as always, Joey's proximity to me made that rather difficult. "Hey," I managed to croak out.

He gave my hand a squeeze, entwining his fingers with mine. "We don't have to do anything, you know, babe."

I leaned my head back against the door, moving to cradle his face with my hands. "I'm just nervous, I guess. I never really do the whole serious relationship kind of thing and I'm scared I'll spoil it."

Joey reached out and tucked a strand of head behind my ear. The gesture was fast becoming such a comfort to me; it elicited such strong feelings of calmness and safety and _love_ in me that only Joey could inspire. "Lauren, there are a lot of people who could try to spoil what we have and, believe me, not one of them is you." I watched him as he spoke, sweeping the pads of my thumbs over his cheeks.

"What happened to my sexy as hell drama queen from this morning, eh?" he asked, lowering his forehead onto mine.

I laughed softly, my arms going round his shoulders, angling my head so that my lips were hovering infinitesimally over his. "She's disappointed that you're still not out of that suit."

"Do you only want me for my body really?" he quipped, moving closer to me until my back was fully against the door, both his hands now resting against the door beside me head, caging me in.

I grinned against his lips slyly, pushing myself against him. "Amongst other things," I breathed, recalling his words from weeks ago when he had called me a challenge.

His hands moved to hold my head. "Ah, well, beggars can't be choosers," he mumbled before claiming my lips in a passionate kiss.

Several more minutes of kissing, both of us fighting for dominance, led to Joey lifting me up by my thighs and carrying my over to the bed on which he dropped me roughly. I knelt up, grabbing his shirt and pulling him back towards me, crushing our lips together once more. My fingers found the buttons of his shirt and set to work undoing them whilst his fingers tangled in my hair.

Finally freeing him of his shirt I ran my hands greedily down his chiselled chest, my nails scraping his pecks as I grinned at him slyly, lust in both of our eyes. He smashed his lips against mine hungrily before pulling away in order to rid me of my dress.

By the time we were both completely naked, we were both kneeling in the centre of the bed, facing each other. There was a brief pause in which our eyes locked, his hands strong on my waist, mine gripping his biceps, the solidness of them still taking my breath away a little.

He pushed me back slowly, crawling over me as my head hit the pillow. He stroked my cheek gently before kissing his way down my neck. My hands went to his broad shoulders, reacquainting themselves with feel of his body as he did the same with mine. He pecked hot kisses along my collar bone before looking up at me as he traced a finger round the swell of my left breast. He continued to watch me as he leant down, lowering his lips onto my nipple. My eyes rolled back into my head, a mewl escaping my throat.

He continued to tease me like this until I felt like my brain had melted into nothing more than a puddle of goo. Not wanting to miss out on all of the teasing fun though, I pulled his face back up to mine, flipping us over so that I was now on top of him. He looked up at me, his eyes smouldering, his hands coming to rest on my waist. I ran my hands down his chest and then paying special attention to his stomach, feeling the taut muscles ripple under my fingers. I finally reached his happy trail, following it slowly, lower and lower until his hand reached out and grabbed mine, flipping us back over.

"Devil," he whispered, his breath red hot in my ear. He captured my lips with his, sucking my top lip into his mouth. I scraped my nails along his back, groaning as he ground his hips against mine, his erection hitting exactly where I wanted it.

"Joey...please," I garbled between kisses, pushing against his lower back, trying to get as close as possible to him.

He looked at me seriously for a second, his hands holding my face still. "You sure?"

I nodded, running my hand along his back softly. "I'm sure."

He lowered his lips back to mine as he very slowly eased himself into me. I gasped as I adjusted to him, my hands gripping his shoulders once more. I raised my hips to his, encouraging him to move, my ankles locking round his hips.

Finding our rhythm once more, we climbed higher and higher towards our climax, both of us falling off the edge at the same time. Joey's head dropped into the crook of my neck, his body collapsing onto mine, pressing me into the mattress with his weight. I curled my arm around his shoulders, fingers scraping through his hair slowly as we both got our breath back.

After several peaceful minutes, I sighed contentedly, shifting under him slightly as I pulled him closer. He turned his head slightly, lips dragging against my throat. "Am I squashing you?"

I traced a finger over the defined muscles of his arms. "No. I like it; makes me feel safe."

He raised his eyes to mine, a small smile on his face. I laughed. "Is that weird?"

He shook his head, still smiling, a twinkle in his eyes. "Love you." He said simply.

"Love you, too," I replied quietly.

Joey did eventually let me move from underneath him so that we could both clean ourselves up. I donned his shirt from the wedding, curling up under the covers as I waited for him to return from the bathroom. He got in behind me, one arm under the pillows and one arm curling tightly around my waist, bringing me closer against his body. He nuzzled his face against the back of my neck.

"Merry Christmas, Lauren."

I turned my head sleepily and pouted for a kiss, to which he obliged graciously. "Merry Christmas, Joey."

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**A/n**

**Apologies for this being a day later than promised, life got a bit hectic yesterday and I ran out of time to upload. Hope the lemony goodness makes up for it?! As always, thank you for the reviews, I appreciate them so much. :)**

**p.s. How good was tonights EE episode?! If only Lucy hadn't interrupted them!**


	5. Chapter 5

The feeling of Joey's fingers running sensuously up and down my spine under the shirt I was wearing woke me up. Slowly getting my bearings I found that my head was now on his chest, one leg swung loosely over one of his. His chest was rising and falling rhythmically under me, his warmth surrounding me. I could feel my nerves tingling under his touch, the feeling spreading to the pit of my stomach. I pressed my face into his chest, breathing in his musky scent. His fingers stilled on my back.

"Good mornin', beautiful," he said, his voice gravelly.

"Is it?" I groaned. Even waking up next to Joey couldn't quite make me a morning person, although it helped considerably.

I felt his chest vibrate as he chuckled at me, moving my hair off my shoulder. "Take it you don't want your present yet then?"

I cracked one eye open at him, taking hold of his hand that was still resting on my shoulder and bringing it to my lips, pressing a quick but firm kiss to the palm. "You got me a present?"

"Of course," he replied quietly.

I raised myself up off of his chest slowly, blinking up at him. "But we only just got back together. I didn't get you anything," I admitted, feeling very guilty despite my sleep-addled brain.

He sat up, leaning back against the pillows and bringing me with him. "You gave me you. Even though I don't deserve you after walking out on you. I know we're not out of the woods yet but it feels so much better going through it with you than without you."

I reached forward and kissed him softly, his hands coming up to cup my face. "Who knew you were such a romantic at heart, eh?" I smiled at him, holding his hand to my face. "Do you reckon we'll ever not have to worry about getting through things? Do you think we'll ever just be able to be us?"

He stroked my cheek with his thumb, his eyes loving. "Yes. Maybe not right now, but in the future, yeah."

I slid my hands down his muscular arms, enjoying the contrast of solid muscle with soft, warm flesh, before bringing them around my waist and snuggling back into his chest. I just wanted to stay here forever. Forget about Christmas Day, forget about court hearings; forget about life. He hugged me closer to him, pressing a kiss to the top of my head. My eyes closed involuntarily, sleep fast edging back into my brain.

"As much as I'd love to not move right now, babe, we've got to get up," Joey said after a few precious moments of silence, making a move to slide me off him.

I didn't respond to this, instead just nuzzling deeper against him and perhaps accidentally on purpose hitching my leg higher on his midriff so that my thigh brushed firmly against his boxer-clad groin.

He groaned, his hips shifting subconsciously towards mine. He gripped my waist and flipped us over in a sudden movement, leaning over me as I grumbled at him incoherently.

"If we start that now, Lauren, I guarantee you we will not be leaving this bed for the rest of the day." I heard a hint of a growl behind his words and noticed lust in his dilated pupils. I knew that if I pushed the right buttons I was close to winning this.

"Exactly," I replied, pulling his face back to mine, lifting my hips to his once more.

He kissed me back roughly for a moment before pulling away abruptly, his forehead dropping onto mine and exhaling heavily. "Lauren, it's Christmas Day; you should be with your family. I don't want to provoke Uncle Max when he's been good enough not to try and kill me so far."

I huffed a little, my arms dropping from around his shoulders, but I knew he was right. "You don't half pick your moments to have pristine morals, Joey Branning," I grumbled, pouting.

He pecked a final kiss to my lips before telling me he was going for a shower. I yawned out an OK before rolling over and snuggling back into the covers.

By the time I'd made it downstairs, showered and suddenly very aware of how hungry I was, a shirtless Joey was stood at the stove, frying bacon in nothing but a pair of low-slung jeans.

"Well if it isn't Chef Branning. How domesticated of you, babes." I snuck up behind him, wrapping my arms around his naked torso, pressing my lips to the dip between his shoulder blades.

"Err, excuse me," Joey said, moving away slightly as he passed me a mug of tea and smirking at me as I shamelessly eyed his washboard abs for the billionth time. "I'm amazing in the kitchen, I'll have you know."

I snorted into my tea, choking a little as I laughed. "Well, you're not bad in the bedroom so I guess I'll take your word for it, eh?"

He looked momentarily shocked at my sauciness before grabbing my arm and pulling me flush against his body and kissing me thoroughly. "I would say stop teasing me but you know I love it." He grinned at me, holding my face still in his hands, his eyes smouldering more than ever. "And just so you know, I thoroughly plan to make sure you're not taking my word for that for too much longer."

With that he turned away from me to continue cooking, leaving me stood red-cheeked and more than a little impatient for the day _that_ happened.

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We did eventually make it to my house where we enjoyed a pretty relaxed Christmas Day morning. Abi was in a good mood because Mum had agreed to let Jay come over. Mum and Dad were in a good mood because their wedding had gone off without a hitch. And I was in a good mood because just when I'd started to think that Christmas for this year was ruined, I'd got Joey back and best of all, Mum and Dad weren't trying to keep us apart.

I was sat on the floor between Joey's outstretched legs, surrounded by the debris of all the wrapping paper and watching Oscar play with his new car racing game whilst Dad pointlessly tried to teach him sales techniques.

"Honestly, Max," Mum said, rolling her eyes as she got up claiming she needed to check on the dinner. "You can't expect every Branning boy to be a car salesman."

"I can give it good go though, eh, Joey?" Dad replied as he followed Mum out of the room.

I snuggled into Joey's embrace, his hands clasped around my tummy, arms under the sides of my favourite wool cardigan. My fingers subconsciously went to my neck and found the gorgeous heart-shaped pendant necklace he had given me for my present. It was simple and beautiful and definitely more than I felt I deserved, although when I told him that he silenced me with a kiss that lasted until Dad had cleared his throat loudly at us.

All five of us left in the room remained quiet, except for Oscar, before Jay broke the silence. "So, you two are like a thing now?"

I looked up at him calmly. "Yes," was my simple reply. "Didn't Abi just explain this to you?"

He nodded looking a little sheepish. "Well, yeah. But it's still a bit of a shock to see the real thing. A good shock though," he added. "You look happy. Not gonna lie, it's a nice change from you looking like you want to kill everyone."

I could feel Joey smiling into the back of my hair, his arms squeezing me. "Err, I definitely don't do that. Tell your boyfriend he's wrong, Abi."

Jay interrupted before she could speak however. "No, I'm just saying it's nice, y'know? I mean, if you're happy, who really cares if you're cousins? It's not like you grew up together."

There was a moment of silence before Abi squealed, flinging her arms around Jay's neck and kissing is cheek repeatedly. "Jay! That is so adorable."

I rolled my eyes and gagged a little, turning to look at Joey who was just smiling at me as he shook his head. He pecked a chaste kiss to my lips and I felt myself smile back at him involuntarily. Those cute but smouldering looks really are the most lethal.

A couple of hours later we had eaten our Christmas dinner and were just getting up to move over to the lounge when Joey announced that he should go and spend some time with Alice. I walked him to the door and hugged him tightly.

"Thanks again for the necklace," I said quietly, still a little overwhelmed.

He smiled at me, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "You're welcome, babe."

We watched each other silently for a moment before sharing a quick but intense kiss. "I'll see you later, yeah? At the Vic?"

He nodded a reply as he made his way out and I shut the door softly behind him.

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Joey, Alice, Carol and Bianca all arrived together in the Vic just after Uncle Jack and Sharon had joined us. As Dad and Uncle Jack stood up to bring another round in, Joey slid into Dad's vacated seat next to me.

"Alright, babe?" he said quietly as he shrugged out of his jacket. He was sat so close to me our arms and legs were touching. I tried not to act like it bothered me at all, although the truth was being close to him again just reminded me of his promise in the kitchen earlier on. I smiled at him and secretly entwined my pinkie finger with his under the table. It was an innocent gesture and yet the spark from the contact reached places it _definitely_ shouldn't have.

"So where's Max taking you for your honeymoon next week, Tanya?" Sharon asked.

Mum started to describe all the features of the cruise they were going on before Gran interrupted her.

"In my day we didn't do nothing like that; it was much simpler. Much less faff. Much more about the actual wedding vows than the wedding, y'know? There was none of this going abroad malarkey. Probably would be better for this family if it was still that way; we don't have the best of luck abroad, do we? Especially Lauren, getting kicked out of America..." She trailed off, downing the gin in her glass.

"You got kicked out of America?" Joey asked, nudging my shoulder with his, grinning. Everyone else was staring at me.

I huffed and rolled my eyes. "It's a long story." When I realised everyone was still staring at me I threw myself back into my chair, crossing my arms defensively. "And not one I'll be talking about to any of you lot."

Tanya shook her head. "Honestly, Mum. What did you have to bring that up for? We were talking about my honeymoon, not airing Lauren's dirty laundry."

I rolled my eyes again, my cheeks feeling a little red. As conversation turned back to the honeymoon I felt Joey graze his finger over the underside of mine, the feeling was delicious. I lifted my eyes to his and took a little comfort in the sincere way he was watching me.

As Dad got another round in, Sharon proposed a toast to the happy couple. "To Max and Tanya," she began. "May you be happy together forever, second time lucky," she added with a wink.

"To Max and Tanya," we all repeated.

Dad wrapped one arm around Mum's shoulders, the other lifting his drink in the air. "To my wife," he chanted.

Mum smiled in response, kissing his cheek. "To my husband."

"Yes," said a cold voice from behind us. "To my husband."

Everyone turned at once to see a rather bedraggled looking woman standing in the middle of the Vic, Derek standing next to her, an evil glint in his eyes.

**A/n**

**I apologise for the long wait. I'm back at Uni now so I've found it hard to find time to write. The good news is though that most of the next chapter is already done, so, all being well, it should be up very soon. Thank you for the reviews, they are much appreciated. It's great encouragement to get me writing. :) Hope you're all enjoying all the Jauren goodness in EE atm, I know I am! See you in the next few days.**


	6. Chapter 6

"Excuse me?" Mum said, shock etched into every feature of her face.

Dad stood up abruptly, stalking towards Derek and grabbing him by the collar. "What the hell are you playing at, eh, Derek?"

Uncle Jack shot forward in order to stand between them, one hand on both of their chests, forcing them apart.

"She's unstable, Derek. What's wrong with you, eh? She's not well and you've brought her here to spoil everyone's day. Why have you brought her here? _How_ have you even brought her here?" Dad's face was red with anger as the questions flew out of his mouth.

"Now, now, Max," Derek said, leering forwards and taking a hold of the woman's arm. "Aren't you going to say hello to your wife? Don't talk about her like she's not here. Where are your manners?"

"For the last time, Derek, she is not my wife!" Dad shouted, exhaling loudly and rubbing his face with his hands.

At this point Mum stood up too, walking calmly towards Dad, a dangerous look in her eye. "Max, why would this woman be confused about whether or not you are married to her? It's not generally something you get mixed up about, is it?"

Dad turned to face Mum, looking her straight in the eye. "She's not my wife. You are my wife. My only wife. This woman, Kirsty, her name's Kirsty."

"I don't care what her name is," Mum snapped over the top of him.

"Please just listen to me, Tan, I can explain. I met her last year when we weren't together, we had a fling, I ended it, I swear. It's been over for ages, but she's been stalking me..." Before Dad could finish his sentence, Kirsty finally piped up once more.

"Oh, enough already. Is that really the whole story, Max? Is that it?" She walked right up to his face and sneered at him. "That's not the way I remember it, darlin'."

"Get out," Dad said coldly. "I have tried to help you, tried to be the better person but I have had enough. You've hurt my family today and you've crossed a line."

Suddenly, out of nowhere, there was a loud smack as Mum's hand connected with Dad's face. "No! You're the one who's crossed a line, Max! You! You have hurt your family. Again!"

"Let me explain, Tanya. I need time to explain it to you!" Dad pleaded, grabbing her arm and pulling her towards the door.

Mum pulled her arm out of his grasp. "How many more explanations can there be, Max?" she asked bitterly before making her own way outside.

A heavy silence followed her departure in which nobody knew where to look. There was a ringing in my ears and I felt like I couldn't remember how to use my face. We all watched as Derek inclined his head to the door in lieu of telling Dad to leave with him. This Kirsty woman made her way outside too, the latter's eyes never leaving Dad as she left. As Dad turned to follow them outside, his gaze caught mine.

I could do nothing but stare. There was a coldness running down my spine, and I felt like I was choking. How could he have done this? To us? To Mum? He looked back at me, a thousand apologies in his eyes. As we stared at each other everyone started to chatter noisily behind us, the shock wearing off.

"Lauren," he began.

I felt something snap in me. "Don't talk to me," I spat, my voice somewhat strangled. I turned away from him and lunged for the nearest glass of alcohol, not caring what it was. I crushed it to my lips and started to down it as fast as I could, craving the numbness I knew it would bring. Before I could swallow more than a couple of gulps, however, Joey peeled the glass from my shaking hands, holding my head with one hand as I choked a little. I looked up at him, tears blurring my vision as I tried to push him away viciously. "Get off," I croaked.

"Lauren," he said softly, his eyes sad. I continued to struggle against him until he grabbed my arms firmly, holding me still so that I couldn't reach for the glass again. He placed himself directly in front of me, lowering his face so that he was looking straight at me. "No. Listen to me, Lauren. Use me instead. Not that. You don't need that."

A sob escaped my lips, my jaw trembling as I looked into his eyes, before he pulled me into a tight, comforting embrace. One hand went to the back of my head, supporting it whilst the other was tight around my waist, pulling me into his chest. My hands balled into fists against his shoulders, as I started to cry in earnest, the sobs wracking my body, my legs shaking a little. His lips were against the side of my forehead, pressing soft kisses there in between whispered words of comfort.

"Sshhh, it's okay," he repeated again and again, rocking us ever so slightly from side to side. I pressed my face into his shirt, feeling the wetness from my tears spread into it against my face. I don't know how long we stood there for – it could have been several minutes, it could have been several hours.

Over my sobs I could hear people moving around us. I could hear Abi crying not far away, Gran and Carol shouting, Uncle Jack shouting as well. Starting to feel a bit hysterical from the sobbing I brought my face back slightly, gasping for air. I lowered my arms so as to wrap them around Joey's torso, bringing myself even closer to him. He ran his fingers down the side of my face, wiping my tears away gently.

I felt him press another kiss onto my forehead and I closed my eyes, resting my face against his chest once more. It was then that a very small voice in the back of my head remembered that we were in a public place and that people could see us, closely embraced, affectionate. I didn't care. I felt like screaming it. I didn't care about what anyone thought anymore. I was sick of them all. I was sick of their drama, their affairs, their secrets. I didn't want to be like them; hiding things all the time. I just wanted Joey.

I suddenly heard Alice speak from right next to us but I couldn't hear what she said. I opened my eyes as Joey replied, not looking at anything other than the buttons on his shirt. He curled his arm over my shoulder, pulling me into his side as he moved forward slightly. I felt him drape his jacket over my shoulders before leading me to the door.

"C'mon, I'm taking you home," he said into the top of my head. I heard him tell someone where we were going before opening the door and leading me outside. The cold air was a relief, clearing my head slightly.

Before we could walk more than a few steps however, we saw Mum, Dad, Derek and Kirsty all shouting at each other at the same time just outside the Vic.

I caught the tail-end of Kirsty's speech, screeching about how she was Dad's wife and that they were in love. I felt my stomach churn and just managed to shove Joey out of the way before I vomited onto the pavement. Joey wrapped a hand around my hair, pulling it out of my face whilst rubbing my back gently with his other hand.

I heard Mum's voice suddenly right next to us. "Lauren?! Are you alright? I'm sorry, darling. I'm so sorry..." She trailed off, breaking down into tears. "Take her home, Joey. Stay with her, please?"

"I will," Joey replied, continuing to rub my back slowly. I managed to stop gagging, the cold air helping to ease my stomach. I could feel myself shaking, my knees wobbling. I gripped Joey's wrist with both my hands to try and steady myself as I heard Mum's heels click as she walked away.

Joey's voice was soft in my ear. "If I pick you up and carry you are you going to feel sick again?"

I debated for a moment before deciding I didn't feel sick anymore and shook my head him. One of his arms went carefully under my unsteady knees, the other supporting my back, and he lifted me into his arms. I rested my head in the crook of his neck, one of my hands gripping the lapels of his jacket still wrapped around my shoulders, the other clinging round his neck.

As we made fast progress across the square more tears rolled silently down my face. I sniffed, trying to win back a little control over my emotions but failing miserably. Joey occasionally pressed a quick kiss to the top of my head, shifting me a little closer to him.

Arriving at the house, Joey gently lowered me onto the sofa and pulled the throw over my body. It felt nice to be in the warm; I hadn't realised I was shaking quite so much. As he stood up I grabbed his hand.

"No," I managed to croak out feebly, my voice catching. "Please don't leave me."

He squeezed my fingers whilst his other hand and stroked my tear-stained cheek softly. "I'm coming right back, alright? I'm not leaving you."

I nodded once stiffly, bringing his jacket and the blanket closer around me. A few minutes later Joey returned, laden with several items.

"Here," he said as he passed me a bottle of water. I drank it gratefully, my mouth feeling horrifically dry after the alcohol and the vomit. Once I had had my fill he took the bottle off me and coaxed me to sit forward slightly as he crouched down in front of me.

"Sit still for me, baby," he said quietly as he ran a warm, wet flannel softly over my face. I watched his face as he worked and noticed that his jaw was locked even though his eyes were gentle. I timidly took his free hand, pulling it into my lap and holding it in my own. It felt heavenly being looked after like this. It made my chest ache. I felt emotionally raw. It felt like we'd created a bubble round us where none of the chaos of the past hour could reach us. I couldn't really even think about it properly; I could only focus on Joey.

"Are you angry?" I whispered, watching as he clenched the muscles of his jaw.

Putting down the flannel Joey met my eyes, sniffing once. "Not with you." He leaned up slightly and rested his forehead against mine, closing his eyes. He stayed there for a good minute before leaning back. "Are you okay?"

I reached up and cupped his face. "I will be," I replied softly. He pulled my hand to his lips and kissed it firmly.

"I love you," he announced. The way he said it combined with the look on this face made it seem like he was telling me the most important secret of all time. Which, I suppose, to us, it was.

"I love you," I repeated quietly, my lips trembling again. Surely I couldn't start crying again tonight?

He released a long breath his hands gripping mine tightly. "I was worried you were going to freak out and reject me."

I sniffed, leaning closer to him and forcing him to look at me. "Are you serious right now? Reject you? You're the _only_ thing stopping me from freaking out. I'd probably be in the gutter by now, drowning in vodka and-"

He cut me off abruptly. "Stop. I don't want to imagine that. It's hard enough being tortured by seeing you fall apart like that. Don't add more onto that."

I slid off the sofa onto my knees in front of him, wrapping my arms around his shoulders and hugging him as tightly as I could. His arms wound around me slowly, hands splayed over my back. "I'm sorry," I said into his shoulder.

"Don't you dare apologise, Lauren," he growled into my neck before kissing it. "Don't you dare."

We stayed silent for a bit, our chests moving against each other's as we breathed. The safely his strong arms provided me with was a billion times better than any temporary relief alcohol could have offered me.

After some time, Joey eased us both up off the floor, holding my waist as I struggled to get any feeling back into my legs. "Do you want to stay down here tonight or go upstairs?"

"Upstairs," I replied. I didn't want to be in here when everyone finally returned.

Fifteen minutes later, I was curled up in my bed, head on Joey's chest, his arms around me. Thoughts of everything that had happened started to swirl around my head and I fought to keep them at bay – I didn't want to think about it yet. I tried to make my eyes close but they felt glued open. I traced patterns over the curve of Joey's shoulder with my finger as he ran his hand steadily up and down my back over the top of my pyjama top.

"Do you want to watch TV?" Joey asked quietly when he saw I was still just staring into space.

I shook my head. "What do you want?" He tried again.

"You," I replied, sliding my hand down his muscular arm and nuzzling my face against him.

"You have me, babe." He entwined our fingers together on the bed where our hands lay.

I raised myself up off the bed, leaning on my elbows as I leant over him. The necklace he had given me swung between us, the tip of it just hitting his chest. "No, I mean I _want_ you," I said, peppering kisses under his square jaw.

His hands came up to rest on my waist. "I don't know if that's a good idea, Lauren."

I looked at him, resting the back of my fingers against the side of his face. "Why not?"

"You're upset. I would feel like I was taking advantage of you," he said, sincerity rich in his tone.

"It's not taking advantage if I want this. Which I do," I added, shifting so that I was completely over the top of him. I kissed him, trying to pour into it how I was feeling. He reciprocated the kiss hesitantly at first but became more enthusiastic the more passionate it became.

He rolled us over slowly, leaning on his elbows, keeping a little distance between us still. "Are you sure, Lauren?"

"I need to feel something other than anger and pain, Joey. I need you." I held his gaze as I spoke, my fingers connecting around the back of his neck.

Obviously seeing something reassuring in my gaze, he nodded and leaned down resuming our kiss. There was an air of desperation in the way we were moving against each other, with each other. There was no fight for dominance this time, more of a slow build of passion. He wanted to love me and I wanted to let him and love him in return.

My top removed, he ran his hands all over my body, finding sensitive spots I hadn't known existed. He trailed his fingers lightly down the inside of my wrists, over my ribs, over my hips, behind my knees. He kissed his way from my collar bone to the waistband of my pyjama shorts. He looked up at me as he pushed a finger under the waistband of both the shorts and my knickers and began to pull them both down. I reached out a hand stroked his face. "I'm sure," I assured him.

Making short work of removing them completely, I was now naked under his smouldering gaze. I felt my temperature soar as he circled his fingers over my hip bones, getting closer and closer to where I most wanted them. I could feel the coldness of the necklace against my skin and reached up to grasp it in my hand.

"Joey," I half moaned, half choked as he suddenly ran a finger straight down my centre. My hips rose of their own accord craving the contact again. He placed one hand flat on my stomach, the span of his hand almost completely covering it. He teased around my clit torturously slowly, my hips rising again trying to maintain the contact. The slight pressure of his hand on my stomach only increased the desperate feeling.

"Joey, please," I whispered, my left hand grappling pathetically against his wrist, trying to guide him.

"Sshhh," he mumbled, his voice deep. "Just feel, Lauren."

Before I time to even process his words however, he had lowered his mouth onto my centre, sucking my clit gently into his mouth.

"Ahh," I moaned, my eyes rolling back into my head. I could feel my orgasm fast approaching already and I placed my hand behind the back of his head, trying to hold him in place whilst attempting not to push him forwards. I could feel the first waves of my climax rush forwards when he suddenly sat up, removing his hand from my stomach as he did so. The loss of the feel of his mouth on me and the delicious pressure on my stomach was torturous. I felt my orgasm drop back slightly but not far enough for me not to feel utterly flustered.

Joey crawled back over me, smashing his lips against mine roughly, his hands gripping my waist again. I could taste myself on him and it just drove me a little more insane.

"Do you have any idea how sexy you are when you're about to come?" Joey growled into my ear, his breath hot against my neck.

I scraped my nails over his broad shoulders and rolled my hips against his, causing his erection to slide against my folds.

"Fuck," he groaned. I could see the muscles in his arms strain as he held himself still over me.

"Now, Joey. I need you now," I gasped, starting to guide him into me. He claimed my lips as he eased himself forwards until he was fully sheathed within me. I was till so close from before that I nearly come just from the feeling being filled by him completely.

He started to slide in and out of me faster and faster. I wrapped my legs around his waist, my heels digging into his back as I raised my hips, desperately trying to hold off for a bit longer. Every thrust caused a strangled mewl to escape my lips.

"Joey, I..." I choked out, my lips against his.

"Just come, baby. Come for me," he demanding, his thrusts becoming harsher and faster.

My orgasm hit hard, sending a spark through every nerve ending I had. A stifled scream broke from my lips as I threw my head back against the pillows. Tipped over the edge my own climax, I felt Joey orgasm, thrusting deeper than ever into me, his head falling against my neck.

We remained still, basking in a post-coital bliss for a moment before he rolled off me, pulling me onto his chest.

"You okay?" he asked breathlessly, his hand under my chin so as to raise my face to his.

I nodded. "Thank you," I said, taking his hand and entwining our fingers once more.

"You really don't need to thank me, babe," he said, a laugh escaping with his words.

I smiled against his skin. "You know what I mean."

He pulled me the covers up so that they covered up to my shoulders before wrapping his arm tightly round my waist. "Yeah, I do. And I've got you. As long as you want me, I'll be here."

I felt my eyes close with tiredness. "I want you forever," I garbled, squeezing his fingers with mine. I heard him whisper an 'I love you' before I slipped into oblivion, worries of what was coming for me tomorrow successfully chased from my mind for the time being.

**A/n**

**So, as you can see, I changed the circumstances of Kirsty's character. I've ummed and arred over this decision probably more than I should have done considering this is only fanfiction but I don't want to offend anyone. I don't pretend to be an expert on mental health or depression and so please don't be offended if the way I depict her is perhaps not as sensitive to the issue as it could be. **

**Moving on from that point, hope you liked the lemon and Joey's reaction to Lauren being upset? Thanks again for the reviews. See you soon! :)**


	7. Chapter 7

The sound of raised voices woke me up. I stirred, opening my eyes and groaning as the light streaming in through the window blinded me a bit. I looked over to Abi's side of the room to see that her bed was empty, the duvet missing. She'd obviously either spelt downstairs or in Oscar's room.

I felt Joey shift beside me, turning his head slightly on the pillow. He mumbled something incoherently before settling back down again. I felt myself smile a little and sat up slightly to as to see him better. He looked so peaceful asleep; his jaw relaxed, brow clear, naked chest rising and falling slowly. He still had one arm draped protectively around my waist, the other lay extended above his head on the pillow.

I pressed a kiss to the underside of his jaw causing him to incline his head slightly towards me. Repeating the action, I traced a finger lightly over his lips.

"Joey," I whispered. His lips twitched ever so slightly and he breathed in deeply through his nose, but other than that he didn't respond.

"Joey," I tried again, kissing his lips this time. As I made to pull away his hand pushed gently against my back, holding me in place. His kissed me softly, once, twice, three times, before finally opening his eyes and nudging his nose against mine, his hand cupping my face.

"That's a nice sight to wake up to," he said lowly, tracing his thumb over my lips which were turned up in a smile.

I ran my hand over his chiselled body, my smile growing. "You're not so bad yourself."

We shared a prolonged look before he spoke again, his eyes turning worried. "Are you alright? Y'know, after yesterday..."

I looked down, resting my arms on his chest, trying to decide how I was actually feeling. "I don't honestly know." I swallowed, taking comfort from the way his hand was running up and down my back. "It's like, the worst part isn't that I feel upset, it's that it feels like I'm used to it now."

Joey brought my face back up to his, opening his mouth to speak before stopping himself as we heard movement right outside the door. I moved aside slightly so that I was next to Joey rather than almost on top of him but still keeping one arm still draped over his chest.

After a soft knock, Abi opened the door slowly, poking her head around the edge. "Can I come in?"

"Sure," I said, offering her a small smile. I noticed her eyes were puffy; she looked like she had been crying recently. "What's happening downstairs?"

"World War Three," Abi said grimly. "Mum's lost the plot, Dad's still claiming that that woman isn't his wife, she's still claiming that she is, Gran's still drunk from last night, and Derek's stirring everything up with a big spoon and a shit-eating grin on his face."

I exchanged a worried look with Joey, trying to keep my emotions in check. Part of me desperately wanted to run downstairs and scream at everyone. But then another part of me just wanted to run away from it all; have nothing else to do with this messed up family.

I cleared my throat, attempting at a bit of humour. "Well, you know it's bad when even Abi starts firing the S-bombs, eh?"

None of us laughed, instead we lapsed into a concerned silence. Abi bustled around for a bit, Joey was staring at the ceiling, his brow furrowed while he trailed his fingers up and down my arm and I lay still, my head on Joey's shoulder, chewing my lip.

A thought occurred to me. "Where did you sleep last night, by the way?"

"Downstairs." Abi didn't stop what she was doing to answer me. "Mum didn't sleep at all, just sat in the chair, staring, and Dad stayed over at Uncle Jack's after Mum threw him out."

"She threw him out?" I asked, a little shocked but not at all disappointed. "How come I didn't hear any of this?"

"You were conked out, babe," Joey supplied, his hand still running up and down my arm absentmindedly.

Abi nodded, finally looking over at us. "Yeah, and by the way, it makes me really uncomfortable that you're both sleeping in here and...y'know...doing stuff."

"Whatever, Abs," I said, nuzzling closer to Joey. "I think you have bigger problems than whether or not me and Joey had sex in here last night. We both do," I added.

"Ugh," Abi sighed, wrinkling her nose. "Do you really have to be so blunt all the time, Lauren?"

I didn't answer her, my mind wandering back to what was happening downstairs. I could hear Gran and Dad arguing. "Dad's back now then?"

"Yeah, he got here just before I came upstairs. Say's he wants everyone together so that he can explain. You better get up soon. I'm going to get Oscar up." With that Abi left, leaving me and Joey alone again.

I snuggled into his body, bringing the covers right up to my chin. He wound his arm over my shoulders, embracing me tightly.

"You'll have to face them at some point," he said quietly, obviously deducing from my actions that I wasn't really up for dealing with my parents yet.

"I know," I mumbled against his skin. "But can I just have a few more hours, please?"

Joey kissed the top of my head. "You can have whatever you want, babe."

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

Half an hour later I was sat in the kitchen at Gran's house where Joey was living, waiting for him to get out of the shower. We had made a sharp and swift exit from the house after Abi's warning; succeeding in going unnoticed by anyone else there. I was sure they would realise soon enough and would probably go mad but for the time being, I didn't care.

I curled my fingers around my tea, looking up as I heard the doorbell go. Hearing Poppy shout that she would get it, I lost interest immediately, assuming it would just be Fatboy. My mind was once again preoccupied with the latest situation my family had got themselves into. Sighing, I turned my head slightly, startling as I saw Alice standing in the doorway to the kitchen, a look on her face that read somewhere between anger, confusion and incredulity.

We shared a prolonged, awkward look as she finally walked in. "Hi," I offered eventually. When she didn't respond I continued. "Joey's just in the shower," I explained, wafting a hand vaguely in the direction of the stairs.

Alice remained silent, pulling out the chair opposite mine and sitting down, still watching me carefully. I looked back at her apprehensively.

"Are you okay?" she asked, finally breaking her silence.

I nodded, sipping my tea slowly and pulling my jumper closer around me with my other hand. "Yeah, thanks." I smiled a little. "Joey's looking after me."

She nodded slowly, a determined look in her eyes. "You're together, aren't you?"

I looked up at her. There was no point beating around the bush, there was a good chance she knew now anyway after him comforting me last night. "Yes," I replied softly.

She nodded again, her lips pursed. "You do realise that he's your _cousin_, don't you?"

I cocked my head sideways, raising my eyebrows and pursing my lips back at her. "Gosh, you know what, Alice? We had absolutely no idea." I tried not to sound too scathing but some residual anger from yesterday was stirring back up inside me. I huffed, looking away from her, tracing the handle of my mug with my index finger absentmindedly.

"I love him," I admitted when Alice didn't speak. I could feel her gaze burning into my skull. "I know it sounds ridiculous at first but, think about it. Take away the part about us being cousins and we're just two people who met each other a few months ago and if we didn't have the same last name and no one had ever told us we were related we'd never have known."

"Are you saying that makes it okay?" Alice asked. "Do you really think people are going to see it like that?"

"Do you really think people round here have the right to judge?" I replied, a little hysterically. "Every week there's another divorce, another affair, another fight, another funeral. It never ends. People in glass houses shouldn't throw stones."

"Maybe you're right," Alice began.

"I am right," I deadpanned, glaring at her as I interrupted.

"Maybe you _are_ right," she continued, "But just because everyone else creates drama doesn't mean you have to too. Especially involving Joey in it."

"What? You think I've tricked him into this relationship, or something?"

Alice sat back in her chair, sighing. "No, Lauren. God knows Joey is the most stubborn of them all when it comes to getting what he wants. But he's been through a lot, Lauren, and it's made him rash. He gets caught up in the moment; he acts on his heart not on his head. He's more of a liability than you are."

I thought back to him telling me about the bargain he had made with Derek, choosing to leave me and break my heart over living with his father. I thought of him covering for me about the accident, putting his own future on the line for me. I couldn't argue with what Alice was saying because it was true. I took a moment to choose my next words.

"But if you love someone enough, does any of it really matter? It's a far cry from a perfect situation, but when I'm with him I don't care about that. We're not trying to cause drama; we tried very hard not to do that. But we couldn't ignore the connection between us, Alice." I looked at her imploringly. "I know you're worried about your brother, but I promise I'm not trying to lead him astray." I cracked a small smile, realising that both him and me were pretty much already some of the most wayward of people.

Alice sighed, her gaze losing some of its ferocity. "Y'know, if I hadn't seen how he was with you last night I would be kicking up such a fuss right now. But I have never, _ever_, seen my brother act like that for another girl. Half of me was confused and more than a little angry. The other half was over the moon that my brother was finally showing more care for another person than for himself. I mean, don't get me wrong, he's always been charming and respectful, most of the time anyway. But Joey doesn't do hugs and kisses and he certainly doesn't deal with girls _crying_." Alice laughed a little as she spoke. "And yet, for you, he's different. And you're different. I know I don't know you that well, but I can tell you trust him. You were defensive and distant with me for a while but you never were with him; I guess I should have read more into that. And he trusts you too, even though he never really trusts anyone."

She stopped her musings, conflicting emotions running over her face. "I just don't know how to feel about it, Lauren."

I reached out a hand tentatively, placing it over hers when she didn't pull it back. "I don't expect you to. I don't expect everyone to accept us with open arms, and I don't care if they judge us, I really don't. I just don't want them to try and break us up."

Just as I finished speaking, Joey opened the door of the kitchen, raising his eyebrow at Alice as he walked in.

"Alice?" he asked as he poured himself a glass of orange juice. "What are you doing here?"

"Just came to see Lauren. Ask her how she is. We had a nice conversation about you while we were at it."

Joey rolled his eyes, downing his juice and coming to stand behind my chair, hands gripping the chair on either side of my shoulders. "You can stop being cryptic; I know you know about us, Alice."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Alice asked, looking at Joey as she crossed her arms over her chest.

Joey sighed. "Alice, when have I ever discussed who I'm dating with you?" he said, just as her phone started to ring.

Alice got up, moving towards the door. "Well, you don't have to _discuss_ it in detail, just tell me so that I know, y'know." She smiled at us both, the first true smile since she'd arrived. "Just so you know, I'm happy for you if you're both happy with each other. I'll see you later."

As Alice left, I got up, wrapping my arms around Joey's shoulders and kissing him. He smelled delicious after his shower. His hands cupped my face. "Sorry about her, I didn't know she was coming round. She wasn't too harsh, was she?" he asked.

I laughed. "Is that possible?"

Joey smiled crookedly. "You'd be surprised. My sister is one of the few people I'm actually scared of. But if you tell her that I'll never speak to you again," he added, winking.

I rested my forehead against his, leaning up on my tiptoes and sighing.

"What's up?" he asked, kissing me softly, his hands sliding down to my waist.

"I'm just annoyed."

"Because of your Dad? Maybe you should go and talk it out with them soon."

"Well, yeah, that's the main reason," I said, hugging closer to him.

"And what's the other reason?" he coaxed, his lips against my cheek.

I sighed again, pouting. "Well, it's just, that under better circumstances, we could've made use of this empty kitchen for you to make good on your promise from yesterday."

Joey looked at me for a second before laughing, one hand coming up to hold my chin as his lips descended onto mine, his kiss passionate. I wrapped my arms tighter around his neck, bringing myself flush against him. He moved us forward until the backs of my legs hit the edge of the table. His other arm wound around my waist, lifting me up and setting my down on the tabletop. My hands slipped to his shoulders as he stepped between my legs. Our lips fought for dominance as they slipped against each other, soft and rough at the same time. His grip was tight against my waist, the fingers of his other hand tangled in my hair.

Breathlessly, he pulled his lips from mine. He moved his hand up from my waist and held the back of my neck with it as his lips travelled down from my chin to my collarbone. Both of his hands then slid down my arms until they claimed my hands, our fingers tangling together.

He pulled back abruptly, finding my questioning gaze as I sighed at the sudden loss of contact, only our hands remaining connected. His eyes were twinkling, that ridiculously attractive smirk adorning his face. "Good things come to those who wait, babe."

My mouth dropped open. With that he pulled me up off of the table, turned me by the shoulders and urged me to go and sort myself out before going back home to face the cavalry. Once I had dealt with the familial issues at hand and cleared my head, I was definitely going to have to get him back for that.

**A/n**

**So, a bit of girl bonding in this chapter, mixed up with a bit of teasing from Joey because we'd all be lying if we said we didn't love that, right? Thank you so so so much for the lovely reviews, I love to hear what you think. See you soon! :)**

**ps. Is anyone else both excited and nervous for EE next week? All these Jauren moments just seem too good to be true. I hope whatever curveball they throw at Lauren isn't too horrendous (which, when it comes to EE, is like saying I hope Phil grows his hair back in the next episode).**


	8. Chapter 8

Not long after our frustratingly short make-out session in Gran's kitchen we arrived at my house. I took it as a good sign that when I walked in I couldn't, for the time being at least, hear any shouting. Joey followed me inside, closing the door behind us and throwing me another encouraging look. It had taken a lot more persuading, several more stolen kisses and promises of it just being us for the evening to get me back here. I wasn't trying to be awkward; I just genuinely didn't know if I could take anymore.

Just as I was hanging my coat up the living room door flung open suddenly, Mum walking through it looking more than a little stressed.

"Oh, there you are, darlin'. I was beginning to worry that you weren't coming back."

I scoffed, folding my arms defensively and holding my head up. "Oh, please. I want to hear whatever cock and bull story he's going to come up with this time." My words were harsh but they didn't come out as strongly as I had intended them. I may have _felt_ vulnerable but that didn't mean everyone had to see it.

Mum looked at me sternly, her lips a thin line. "Don't cause more trouble, Lauren, please."

"Cause more trouble? Are you having a laugh?!" I said, my voice rising. Joey placed a hand on my back, the soft pressure soothing me.

"She's not trying to cause trouble, Tanya," he supplied from beside me, his voice compelling. I looked at him gratefully, thankful at least someone was in my corner.

Mum's expression didn't soften any but she did at least nod slightly, apparently accepting what Joey had said. "Let's just hear him out, okay?" Leaving no room further discussion, she made her way into the living room.

"Is she serious?" I said, turning to Joey and exhaling sharply, my hands gripping his shoulders. I closed my eyes as some of the anger from last night bubbled to the surface once more. I sighed, opening my eyes and meeting Joey's worried gaze. "Let's just go, Joey. I've had enough already."

Joey tucked my hair behind my ear, smiling sadly. "You need to talk it out, babe. You need to stay."

"Yeah, he's right," said my dad's voice from the doorway. "Now get in here, yeah, Lauren? You can see Joey later."

I whipped my head round. "What?! No. Joey's staying here, he's not going anywhere." I wasn't sure I could handle all of this without Joey by my side; I wasn't sure I was strong enough not to let the upset cause me to fall off the wagon again. I didn't want to just replace my slight dependency on alcohol with Joey but I still needed him. And besides, now really wasn't the time to get into all of that.

"Lauren, it's fine. I wasn't going to stay anyway," Joey said, his hands on my waist coaxing me to turn back to him.

My stomach dropped, my cheeks paling. "What?" He had persuaded me to come here and now he was going to leave me? I tried to catch his gaze but he wasn't looking at me. Instead, he was glaring at Dad with anger clear on his handsome features. In opposition to his expression, his actions were gentle, his thumbs steadily moving over my t-shirt.

"You need to discuss this as a family, Lauren," he said, finally turning to look at me. His eyes were burning with emotion. "I know you can get through it, baby."

I stared at him for a prolonged moment, taking deep breaths to try and calm myself down. "I hope you're right, Joey."

"I am," he replied quietly. I curled my fingers around the collar of his jacket, bringing his face towards mine just as Dad cleared his throat impatiently from behind us.

"Lauren, c'mon, please," he added sharply.

I rolled my eyes, biting my tongue to stop myself from snapping and "causing more trouble", as Mum had put it. "Give me a minute."

"Lauren, don't argue with me. Get inside. Now." Dad demanded, reaching forward and grabbing my arm tightly whilst yanking me forwards.

"Ow!" I screeched as I pulled my arm free. Joey pulled me into his body, his arm vice-like around my waist.

"What's wrong with you, eh, Max? Haven't you hurt her enough already? You going to start hurting her physically now as well?" I could feel him breathing heavily behind me. I gripped his forearm where it lay across my stomach with my hands, rubbing my thumb lightly over the muscle.

Dad took a small step back, shock now mixed with anger. "Don't be stupid, Joey. How dare you talk to me like that? Of course I'm not. I'd never hurt her," he growled.

"Good. Because everyone else might be happy to watch you hurt the people around you but I can assure you that I'm not." Joey's voice was menacing. "Now, I'll leave and you can explain to her whatever the hell you've done because she should know the truth. I want her to give herself the opportunity to see everything possibly go back to normal." As he spoke he tightened his arm around me even more, his fingers splayed strongly around the side of my waist. "But if, when you have explained, she doesn't want to be here anymore, I won't try and convince her otherwise."

Dad's face was stone as Joey spoke, his hands curling into fists. I pushed myself further back into Joey's body whilst looking at Dad with an expression that read clearly that I really wasn't in the mood for a fight. After staring at Joey and then at me for some time, he nodded stiffly once, before walking back into the living room.

I turned slowly on the spot, winding my arms around Joey's neck. His brow was furrowed deeply, his jaw locked just as it had been last night.

"It was him you were angry with last night, wasn't it?" I said quietly.

He nodded, his forehead falling against mine. "Of course it was."

I cupped the back of his head with my hand, my nails raking through his short hair. "Where did all that come from?"

Joey sighed, pulling me closer. "I grew up watching my dad mess my mum and Alice around. I couldn't do anything about it then because I was being messed around too. I can't let the same thing happen to you. I just can't, Lauren."

I moved a little closer to him, wrapping my arms fully around his shoulders and bringing his head down to rest in the crook of my neck. He pushed his forehead against my throat lightly, turning his head, his lips brushing against my skin.

"I know I've got no right to talk; I hurt you too." His hands were light and unusually unsure on my waist.

I kissed the side of his head softly before speaking softly into his ear. "We've been through this, Joey. That was a different situation. You were blackmailed. It's not the same as just hurting someone for the sake of it."

He brought his head up slowly, his eyes deep with emotion. "Love you," he mumbled, his lips ghosting against mine.

"Love you too," I replied, smiling at him and brushing my nose lightly against his.

"You should go in there." I nodded at him, my lips claiming his once more. He kissed me back lovingly before pulling away. "Call me when you're done, okay?"

"M'kay," I said, my arms dropping unwillingly from around him. He stepped towards the door, opening it quietly.

"Oh and babe?" he began, turning before he left. "Try and behave, yeah?"

I wrinkled my nose at him playfully, despite my uneasiness, and pushed him out the door with one hand. "Don't you start. I always do, thank you very much."

Left alone in the hallway I stood still for a moment, stealing myself. Joey's confidence in me meant a lot, even if I thought he was ever so slightly over-estimating me. As much as I was disappointed that he wasn't going to be in there with me, I knew it was probably for the best. This way I would be completely concentrated, and I guess would see how strong I could actually be. I gulped a few more deep breaths down before opening the living room door and walking in.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

Me, Mum and Abi all sat as, starting from the beginning, back when Mum had cancer, Dad told us the story of how he met Kirsty. He explained how they had both recently come out of a serious relationship when they met. Both were somewhat depressed and so had a lot in common. He acknowledged that he knew the unhealthy basis of their relationship was a bad idea from the start and claimed that he had tried, unsuccessfully, to avoid falling for her.

At first, he said that what they had worked well, that she was a good distraction from the fact that he wasn't with Mum anymore, a distraction from the fact that he still loved Mum. He admitted that he did care for Kirsty but that he did not love her. According to Dad, it was when Kirsty wanted to move their relationship forward, that the problems started.

When Dad refused to acknowledge their relationship as a serious one, Kirsty started to spin stories that claimed otherwise. Apparently he soon found out that this fabricating of situations was a recurring factor of her depression in her previous relationship.

It was at this point that Dad finally found out about Mum's cancer and decided, no contest in his words, to leave Kirsty. The break-up triggered her to claim that they were married and her obsessive stalking began.

To cut a long story short, Dad got Derek, of all people, involved and asked him to deal with it so that Dad could focus on us again. Derek however had been, unbeknownst to Dad, manipulating both him and Kirsty. Derek told Dad that the only way he could keep Kirsty quiet and convince her that he wasn't interested would be to keep giving her money to help her receive some help that Derek would arrange. However, completely unsurprisingly to everyone apart from Dad, apparently, Derek had not been giving Kirsty the money and had been claiming that Dad was still interested in her and that she should stick to her fake stories and keep fighting for him.

Typical Derek behaviour, in short.

The seriousness of this though was that there was now one woman who thought her husband had cheated on her again, and another who had been fed lies about her would-be husband which had caused her illness to reach a more severe level than ever.

No one had spoken for a while after Dad had finished talking. Mum was perched on the edge of the sofa looking like the weight of the world rested on her shoulders. Abi was sat on the floor, her chin on her knees, her face wet, flexing the fingers of her right hand which were still sore from when she slapped Dad as he got to the part about Derek. Dad was stood stock-still in the middle of the room looking sad but relieved. I was curled up at the end of the sofa, my jumper pulled close around me.

"What's wrong this family, eh?" Mum said, breaking the silence at last, tears rolling down her cheeks.

"You do believe me though, don't you, Tan?" Dad asked her, his eyes as pleading as his voice. "Please tell me you believe me?"

Mum smiled sadly, standing up and hugging Dad tightly. "Yes, Max. I need time to process all of this, but, yes, I believe you. I trust you."

Abi stood up too, crossing the living room to hug both Mum and Dad. I watched them, a mixture of emotions churning around in my head and in my stomach. I chewed my lip subconsciously as I sat there, trying to decide how I felt. I believed Dad, I really did. And I felt that, in time, I would come to forgive him. But how could he have been so stupid to trust Derek and then, on top of that, not to realise that something wasn't right with how his "situation" was being dealt with?

Dad looked at me over the top of Abi's head. "Abi, why don't you go help your Mum with lunch, eh?"

Both Mum and Abi looked round at me before leaving me and Dad alone in the living room. He paced backwards and forwards for a minute before sitting down next to me, placing his head in his hands and sighing.

"What's going on in that head of yours, eh?" he asked, watching me with a concerned, sideways glance.

At first I couldn't think of anything to say. I lowered my eyes to the floor and traced the pattern of the carpet with them. My hands fiddled with the frayed edges of my jumper. Looking up I saw he was still watching me. I cleared my throat, swallowing as the dryness scratched slightly.

"So," I began, my voice hoarse, "You're not having an affair, then?"

"No," he answered, his voice sincere. I chewed the inside of my cheek slightly before continuing.

"And you're not breaking up with Mum again?"

"No, Lauren," he repeated, bringing his arm up around my shoulders and kissing my forehead as tears filled the corners of my eyes. I sniffed trying to get a hold of myself.

"I'm so angry with you," I whispered, my bottom lip wobbling.

"Not as angry as I am with myself." I noticed he had tears in his eyes too. He wiped my cheek with his thumb, kissing my forehead once more. "I know I don't say it much to you, Lauren, but you know I love you, right?"

I nodded slowly, allowing his words to comfort me. I rested my head against his shoulder as he pulled me into a hug, neither of us speaking for a while.

"I'm sorry about how I acted before," he announced, his chin atop my head.

"It's fine," I replied, my hand automatically going to my wrist.

"It's not fine, Lauren. I was so desperate for you all to listen to me I overreacted." He gave me squeeze. "I just wanted you to know the truth."

"I know," I said, pulling away and managing to give him a watery smile. He placed a finger under my chin and lifted it. "I'm sorry I've put you through so much, Lauren."

"It's not like I haven't put you through stuff either". I sniffed, watching him seriously. "Just no more secrets, yeah?"

He smiled at me. "No more secrets." He got up then, making his way to the kitchen.

"Tea?" he asked as he reached the door.

I laughed a little, my overwhelmed brain remembering that only half an hour ago I'd been worried that I'd be hitting the bottle to get over this mess, not the PG Tips. "Sure," I replied.

I pulled my phone out and began to scroll through for Joey's number. I sighed heavily, inextricably relieved that everything wasn't as nearly as bad as I had anticipated.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

By teatime there was still a lot of tension in the house, everyone almost walking on eggshells to keep what peace we had restored. Whilst Mum and Dad discussed what was going to happen next in terms of helping Kirsty, me and Joey had relaxed upstairs, making the most of Abi's absence whilst she went to see Jay.

We were laying in bed, post-coital, Joey's head pillowed against my naked chest, his strong arms around me as we chatted about what Dad had told me. I had planned on discussing it first but my frayed emotions got the better of me and I may have simply jumped on him as soon as he got here. I absentmindedly traced patterns over his muscular back, enjoying the peace and the warmth and the security.

"I'm proud of you, babe." Joey mumbled, his lips against my skin.

"Me too, a little bit," I said, smiling in spite of myself. I felt his chest rumble against my stomach as he laughed a little. He moved his hand so that his fingers could claim the necklace that lay around my neck.

"Did Abi really slap your dad?" Joey asked unexpectedly, rolling the pendant between his fingers.

I laughed properly this time. "Oh you should've seen it, Joey. I think she was more shocked than anyone. At least I know for sure that we are definitely related now; I had my doubts before."

We lapsed into a comfortable silence. Joey closed his eyes, nuzzling his face into my skin, me continuing to map out shapes across his back. I ran my fingers slowly through the short hair at the back of his neck, earning a faint groan from him every now and then. I knew he was into that more than he likes to let on. I may have to start using it more often. With my other hand I traced my fingers over and around each ridge of his spine, starting at the top of his neck and working my way down as far as I could reach before repeating the cycle.

Eventually he rolled his shoulders, leaning up and kissing me passionately. "You're driving me crazy with that, y'know," he murmured into the kiss.

"That was my intention," I replied, squirming underneath him as he put more of his weight on me, his hips grinding deliciously against mine. I always felt so tiny and delicate and feminine when he was poised over me like this, all strong muscle and musky scent. But the way he looked at me made me feel like I was the most powerful goddess that had walked the Earth.

His lips claimed mine once more, one hand gripping my hip tightly, the other encasing my breast in his palm. I scraped my nails over his chest and his chiselled abs, the muscles twitching under my touch. He rolled my nipple between two fingers causing me to groan, his name slipping from my lips.

His lips attacked my neck, nipping and sucking here and there. I ran my hands over his back, enjoying the sensations he was creating.

"D'you reckon we can get away with not being caught twice?" I asked breathlessly, my hips rising involuntarily towards his.

He looked up at me, his eyes dark. "That depends on whether you can keep quiet this time," he said, smirking.

"Maybe you'll have to make me," I quipped, my lips crushing against his.

"Maybe I will," he replied into my mouth, his hands travelling down my body.

Running his hands over my thighs he gripped them tightly, pulling my legs up round his waist. We both groaned as his erection slipped against my centre, the need and want that was satiated only moments before returning with new vigour.

He covered my mouth with his as he pushed into me slowly, muffling my groans with his kiss. My nails scratched against his back as we found a rhythm, our movements becoming more and more desperate as we climbed towards a climax. I could feel my orgasm approaching fast as Joey moved quicker and harder within me, the pressure almost unbearable.

"Sshhh, baby," he whispered raggedly, one of his hands coming up to cover my mouth as my moans grew louder. I moved my hips against his, so close to the edge. His other hand trailed down to where we were joined, his thumb grazing over my clit and subsequently pushing me over the edge.

"Joey," I croaked hoarsely, the sound muffled under his fingers still pressed to my mouth. Watching me orgasm pushed Joey to his climax too, his body stilling over me, his groans muffled into my neck.

Rolling off me, he laid his head on the pillow next to mine, watching me sleepily. His hand came up to graze my cheek softly. "Fuck, Lauren. I came here to talk to you, really. Not to have sex. Twice."

I raised an eyebrow at him lazily, interlinking our hands between us. "We did talk. And I literally don't know what I'd do if I didn't have you to talk to. I guess I could get a psychiatrist, but I assume it's considered inappropriate to have sex with them after you've talked, right?" I winked at him, rolling onto my side so that we were face to face. "Are you disappointed or something?"

"Definitely not," he replied, smirking at me.

"Shut up and kiss me then," I said, pouting my lips at him. He obliged graciously before pulling me into his warm body and closing his eyes.

We both must have drifted off for a while as I felt myself jerk awake to the sound of a loud bang.

"Joey!" Disorientated, I just about recognised Alice's voice intermingled with a couple of others. I could hear footsteps running up the stairs."JOEY!"

Joey woke up suddenly next to me, his head rising off the pillow just as Alice burst through the door, tears streaming down her face, blood on her hands.

"Joey," she sobbed. "It's Dad."

**A/n**

**Was that mean to leave it there? Oopsie. I found this chapter incredibly difficult to write; there had to be a lot of information in it and it kept growing and growing in size and it ended up being my enemy. Hopefully it is enjoyable to read though? Thank you SO much for all of your wonderful reviews, they make my day. :) x**

**Ps. Is anyone else still cackling over Dot walking in on Joey and Lauren? I was literally dying of second-hand embarassment. Also, way too many clothes on Joey for my liking. ;)**


	9. Chapter 9

Joey didn't respond immediately, simply staring at his sister with a blank look on his face, his upper body raised up on his forearms. The room was silent other than Alice's ragged breaths. I didn't know where to look or what to do.

Mum chose this moment to move forward, coming to a stop beside Alice, her hand hovering uncertainly near Alice's shoulder. "Darlin', come and sit down and I'll clean you up and you can tell us what happened, eh?"

Alice turned her head sharply, her voice hysterical. "Sit down?! My dad is lying unconscious on the floor, covered in blood, and you want me to sit down? Why are none of you doing anything?!"

Joey moved to sit up properly, turning so that he was sat on the edge of the bed, his head bent, shoulders hunched. Even in the confusion of the moment I thanked whatever providence had made us decide to at least put underwear back on before drifting off before. He rubbed his hands over his face as he turned to Alice.

"What?" Joey finally said. His voice sounded wrong; distant and surprisingly small. In the background I could hear Dad on the phone asking for an ambulance to be sent to Albert Square.

Alice's eyes were wide and frantic looking as she replied. "He's hurt, Joey. I don't know what happened but he's hurt..." She trailed off, her voice breaking.

When Joey still didn't react, Alice lunged forward, whacking her hands against his shoulders repeatedly, her face red and wet with tears. "Joey! Come on! Help me! Why aren't you moving?!"

"Alice!" I exclaimed as she aimed an impressively sharp blow to the side of her brother's head. Joey didn't even seem to be able to react to this either; not to defend himself nor to stop Alice from getting even more worked up.

When it seemed that she wasn't going to stop of her own accord, Dad walked over and grabbed Alice's arms, holding them to her sides as he carefully pulled her from the room, Mum walking beside them. "C'mon now, Alice. This isn't the way to deal with it. I've called an ambulance and sent Jack over to Derek's, okay?"

"No! It's not okay!" Alice shouted, struggling against Dad, attempting to turn back to Joey. "What's the matter with you?! Don't you care at all? He could be dead! He's our _Dad_, Joey!"

I saw Joey flinch at the word 'dead', his broad shoulders hunching further over as if he was caving in on himself. I reached a hand tentatively, placing it lightly on his shoulder. He flinched again, shrugging me off.

I moved off the bed, pulling on my dressing gown and walking round so that I was crouched in front of him. I pried one of his hands away from his face, gripping his fingers with mine tightly. "Joey." He looked up at me, his eyes troubled.

He sniffed, giving my fingers a squeeze. "Lauren, please...don't..." His words died away, distracted by the sound of the doorbell downstairs. He paled, pushing the heel of his other hand against his forehead.

"Don't what?" I coaxed, bringing the hand I was holding to my face and pressing a kiss to the palm.

Just as it looked as though he was about to continue we heard Alice let out a howl of a cry, the sound piercing through the house.

"Shit," he cursed, jumping up finally and starting to throw on his clothes haphazardly. He didn't look at me whilst he dressed, nor did he look at me before leaving the room and running downstairs towards the sounds of his sister's cries.

I followed him down feeling uneasy and concerned. I was hardly Derek's number one fan but I didn't exactly wish something terrible on him, mostly for Joey and Alice's sake. Mum, Dad, Uncle Jack, Alice and Joey were all stood in the hallway, each of them wearing shocked and morose expressions.

Alice turned to face Joey, looking up at him where he stood on the bottommost step of the stairs, her lip wobbling, her eyes as vicious as her tongue. "He's dead, Joey." Her voice cracked and wavered as she spoke. "He's dead and you don't even care!"

Joey stepped down towards her, his voice pleading. "I do care, Al. Don't say that. Please don't say that."

She shook her head, more tears streaming down her cheeks. "You don't!" She closed the distance between them, hitting his chest with each word she said. "You don't care! You never did!"

This time Joey caught her hands in his, holding them still so that she couldn't lash out anymore. "Alice! Stop, please. You need to calm down." Distress bled through his words as he watched his sister break down in front of him.

"Joey's right, Alice," Jack supplied, placing a hand on Alice shoulder which she shrugged off straight away, still glaring lividly at Joey. "You hated him. You're probably glad he's dead. Well, congratulations, you got what you wanted."

Joey let go of her hands as if poisoned. He stood frozen for a moment before opening the front door abruptly and slamming it loudly behind him as he left.

"Joey!" I shouted after him, moving to follow him before Dad grabbed my arm.

"Give him a bit of space, yeah?" Sadness and concern swam in his eyes and I nodded in wake of it. I watched as Mum and Uncle Jack managed to get Alice to walk into the living room and sit her down on the sofa.

I stopped Dad from following them in, desperate to know what was going on. "What...what happened?" My voice was weak, my head spinning.

Dad shook his head, his face grim. "I'm not sure, Lauren. Jack said Derek was lying on the floor, bleeding from the head when he got there. The paramedics pronounced him dead at the scene."

I shook my head minutely, trying to digest this information and trying not to imagine Derek lying in a pool of his own blood. I'd hated him but I didn't want to see that. "But...how?"

"I don't know." Dad gave my shoulder a comforting squeeze before going into the living room. I made my way upstairs and got dressed quietly. My head felt like it was about to explode. When before I'd wondered if we could get through one day without a new drama, it now seemed like the challenge was to get through an _hour _without one.

I sighed, my mind and heart, by the feel of it, wandering to wherever Joey had gone. I wasn't upset at him for leaving as I sure as hell wouldn't want to be surrounded by most of my family when I was so upset. I knew he needed space and I wasn't going to begrudge it him. The problem was now that I didn't know how long to leave it before going after him. I needed to know he was okay though. I needed to know that before I did anything else. Even if he didn't want to see me or speak to me yet, I needed to know that much.

Pulling out my phone I perched on the edge of my bed, biting my nails nervously as I dialled his number and waited for the call to connect. Suddenly, a vibrating noise sounded on my bedside table and I saw Joey's phone lying there, a sense of dread filling me as I realised he'd left it behind.

I sat anxiously turning my phone over in my hands as I made my mind up that I would give it another half an hour and if he hadn't returned by then I would go and see if I could find him.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

By the time I managed to leave the house, almost two hours had gone by and it was coming close to eleven pm. The police had been round wanting to ask a few questions and offer support to Alice and Joey, whose absence seemed particularly interesting to them despite us explaining that he had been here since midday and that according to Jack, the accident looked fresh. Abi had returned not long after the police arrived as well as, Gran, Carol and Bianca, all of them having noticed the flashing lights outside as well as having received several messages from Dad.

Deciding to start off looking to see if he'd gone home to his room at Gran's, I made my way across the dark Square. I was praying I could find him quickly. He'd been there for me last night when I needed him, even though I'd pushed him away at first. I was starting to feel worried that I shouldn't have listened to Dad and gone after him straight away.

I pulled my coat close around my shoulders, my breath billowing out in front of me in the cold air when I saw Joey walking towards me from the opposite direction. I breathed a sigh of relief, walking faster towards him.

"Hey," I said as I reached him. He stopped in front of me, his expression unreadable. Although his brows were furrowed and broody and his eyes bloodshot, I couldn't really make out his general countenance.

He shoved his hands in his pockets, shuffling his feet. "Why are you out here by yourself this late, eh?"

"Looking for you actually," I explained, clasping my gloved hands together as I started to feel the cold. "I was worried about you."

I saw a look pass through Joey's eyes momentarily, his expression softening ever so slightly. It faded as fast as it had come though, a cold facade creeping back over his sharp features. "Yeah, well, don't bother."

I let the comment slide, prepared for it. I had anticipated this reaction. Aside from Derek's death obviously being upsetting, even if there was a deep-rooted hatred between them, I knew that Alice's words would have cut him the deepest. Joey liked the bad boy reputation but I had seen the soft side he kept hidden and I could tell he was cut up inside.

"Joey, what Alice said wasn't true. She was upset, just like you are." I moved closer to him in an attempt to comfort him with gestures as well as words but he moved backwards, slumping onto the bench beside us.

Resisting the urge to roll my eyes, I sat down next to him. We remained silent for a while as I let him have a little sulk for a bit. Lost in thought as I pondered about what could've happened to Derek, I jumped a little as Joey bumped his elbow gently against mine.

I looked round at him, smiling a little as he linked our hands together. "Sorry," he mumbled.

"There's nothing to be sorry for, Joey," I replied, resting my head on his shoulder.

He breathed in deeply. "I don't know what to think, Lauren. My head's all over the place."

I nodded. "Mine too, to be honest with you."

"I don't know how I feel," he confessed. After a long pause he continued, his voice unsteady. "What if Alice _is_ right though, eh? What if I _don't_ care?"

I turned to face him fully, curling my body towards him and cupping his face so as to urge him to look at me. "But you _do_ care, Joey." He closed his eyes, nuzzling his face into my palm as I tried to smooth out his brow with my fingers. "If you didn't care you wouldn't be out here suffering, would you?"

"I did hate him," he whispered, pain in his tone.

"You had right to," I muttered, running my thumb over his eyelid gently.

"I didn't..." He swallowed, opening his eyes again, the emotion burning in them heartbreaking. "I didn't want him to die, Lauren." Sobs began to rip from his throat, the sound tearing holes in my heart.

Moving closer still to him, I went to speak, however another voice beat me to it.

"Joey?" Lucy's voice came from behind us. I didn't bother turning to look round at her, irritated that she's interrupted us when he'd finally started to open up again. Instead I continued to focus on Joey who had pulled out of my grasp, his head in his hands again.

Lucy repeated his name, moving closer as she did so. I turned my head to her briefly, my voice harsh. "Just leave it, yeah, Lucy?"

She recoiled slightly, her eyes narrowing as she watched me move my lips to his ear, whispering gently. " Joey. Let's just get out of here, yeah?"

I saw out of the corner of my eye as Lucy took a step back, her mouth falling open. "Wait. You..." She shook her head slightly. "You're...together? _You_ are with _him_?"

I rolled my eyes, my brain feeling close to boiling point. I really couldn't deal with one of Lucy Beale's temper tantrums right now. "Now's not the time, Luce. Seriously." I leaned my forehead against Joey's shoulder, rubbing my hand up and down his back, trying to offer him some comfort. "Joey, I'm not leaving you out here. Let's go get out of the cold."

"You're cousins! That's disgusting!" Lucy continued, still blissfully unaware of the situation she was encroaching upon.

I glared at her, speaking through gritted teeth. "Are you deaf or something? I said not now."

However before Lucy could say anything else Joey stood up suddenly, shrugging my arms off of him and giving both of us a cold glare. "Why don't both of you shut, up, eh? Or better yet, piss of somewhere else to have your pathetic little arguments." He was breathing heavily, his nostrils flared.

I stared at him, mouth agape. "Joey," I began, but he cut me off.

"Just go home, Lauren," he said, turning on the spot and stalking away in the direction of Gran's house.

I stared after him, my mind reeling. Realising Lucy was still stood there I rounded on her, my anger rising to dangerous levels. "Does your pathetic little brain have any idea what happened today?" Her expression remained obnoxiously blank. "His Dad _died_, Lucy. Was probably murdered by the sound of it. And you're mouthing off about us being together. Who the fuck cares?!"

With that, I left her stood out in the cold and stormed home, fumbling awkwardly with my keys as I made it to the door, hot, anguished tears blurring my vision. Finally making it inside I could hear voices issuing from the kitchen. Hoping to avoid people, I opened the living room door and rushed in, my brain automatically taking me to the destination I hated myself for wanting.

I opened the door to the drinks cabinet numbly, Joey's words ringing in my ears. My hands shook as I reached for the nearest bottle, prizing the lid off and jumping a little as the neck of the bottle clanged loudly against the rim of the glass I was holding. My first thought had been to neck the entire glass down but after one sip my throat closed up. I gagged, the taste of the alcohol burning my throat. But instead of enjoying the burn it made me feel sick. I knew that it was Joey I wanted really. I lowered the glass, ashamed of myself, and pushed it away, wiping my eyes with the sleeve of my jumper.

"Not always the answer is it?"

I swivelled round, startled. I hadn't realised Alice had been sat on the sofa. Her eyes were puffy and red but she looked calmer than she had done before. I stared at her, not knowing what to say. I was angry with her but I knew telling her that wouldn't make matters worse. My head felt heavy, the weight of everything that had happened in the last forty-eight hours bearing down on me.

"Did you find him?" she asked, her voice raspy.

I nodded, moving to perch on the arm of the chair.

"Is he okay?" she prodded, pulling the blanket round her more securely.

"No," I looked at her, letting her know that she hadn't helped in making him not okay. I knew it was blunt, but at this stage I didn't care so much. Alice sighed, looking as tired as I felt. "He does care, y'know, Alice."

She nodded, looking a little pained. "I know," she whispered. "I know I shouldn't have said what I said, Lauren."

I stared at the carpet silently. In hindsight, I knew I shouldn't have taken his words seriously due to both of us being upset, but at the time I was letting myself wallow in the fact that he had pushed me away, again.

"Don't let him block you out, Lauren," Alice said unexpectedly. "He needs you. He's always strong for everyone. He needs someone to be strong for him."

I sighed, the knife twisting a little deeper into my heart. "I'm not strong, Alice. And what if he doesn't want me there?"

"Lauren, you told me this morning that you love my brother. If you really meant that, you won't let him push you away. He didn't let you push him away in the Vic, did he?" I shook my head, tears springing to my eyes again. "He loves you, Lauren. But you have to be the strong one this time. Do you know where he is?"

I looked up at her, surprised at the turn of events. "I think he went home," I mumbled.

"Then go after him. And tell him...tell him I'm sorry." Her voice broke on the last word.

I stood up and, after asking Alice to tell Mum where I'd be, I set off for Joey's once more. I didn't have high hopes of him letting me in, preparing myself for a dejected walk back home again. To my surprise however, after banging for quite a while on the door and shouting his name along with threats of staying out here all night, I finally heard movement on the other side.

I felt nervous suddenly, because part of me knew that, despite loving each other, it was now or never. It was the knife edge. He was either going to let me in or block me out. Either way, I was going to have to be stronger than I ever had been before.

**A/n**

**Poor Joey, eh? I decided to give Lauren a tad more emotional maturity in this than the actual EE writers did when it came to Derek;s death. I hope it wasn't too OOC though. As always, thank you so much for your reviews, I appreciate every single one of them. :) See you soon! **

**Ps. Can't believe that's another week of EE episodes and still no new shirtless Joey scenes. .earth. **


	10. Chapter 10

The door opened slowly to reveal Joey. His face was purposefully blank but the sadness in his eyes was gut-wrenching. He blocked the entry with his body, leaning his forearm against the door, the other hand braced against the door frame. He leaned his forehead against the edge of the door, closing his eyes and sighing heavily.

"You can never just leave it, can you, Lauren?" he said, his voice subdued.

"Nope," I said, scrambling together every ounce of courage I possessed. "You need me."

"I don't need anyone," he replied bitterly, moving to shut the door. I smacked my hand against it and placed my foot in the way, pushing back with all my might.

"Joey, please. It doesn't have to be this way." I caught his gaze, hoping to convey how much I loved him through it.

He back looked at me, his walls still very much up. "I thought you'd be midway through your third bottle of vodka by now." His tone was nasty and obviously intended to sting. I swallowed down the hurt, remembering what Alice had said to me, remembering what _he_ had said to me, remembering how far we'd come.

"Oh, nice. Thanks. It's good to know exactly what you think of me," I sneered at him, my hand still putting pressure on the door, my foot wedged in the gap. I breathed deeply, knowing that he hadn't meant that, knowing that I needed to cut through his defences quickly before my own went up by default. "That had been my first plan, if you must know," I admitted quietly. "But, see, then I realised that if I just went straight to the bottle I'd just be proving you right, proving everyone else right. You mean more to me than that, Joey. "

I saw his head twitch slightly, his hand moving higher up on the door. He swallowed, looking up at me, his eyes tired. I pushed the door open a little more, stepping up onto the doorstep, leaning in close to him.

"Joey, I love you. And you love me." I was impressed that my voice was remaining strong. "I have never felt this way about anyone. I have never felt such a connection to anyone. I have never been as comfortable as I am with you, as happy as I am with you, as _me_ as I am with you. And from what Alice told me, neither have you."

I paused, my heart beating fast as he reached out and ran his fingers gently down my face, his own wearing a tortured expression.

"I know it's not really seemed like it recently, but I've got a stronger backbone than you think and I'm not going to let you push me out again, Joey, so please don't even try. We've come so far. I don't want to let you go now that I've finally found you."

He breathed in deeply, his forehead dropping against his arm before moving aside, opening the door so that I could walk in. I pushed it closed behind me, my eyes not leaving his as I saw him struggle with some kind of internal battle. He tucked a strand of hair behind my face, his fingers hot against my cold cheek.

"Joey?" I questioned, worried by how pale he looked, tears building up in his eyes. It was possibly the most heartbreaking thing I will ever see; the strongest, bravest, most guarded man I know breaking down before my own eyes.

A younger version of me would have run away from this situation, too awkward and uncomfortable to deal with it. But I loved this man, and I had to put him first this time. It certainly put matters in perspective for me. It didn't matter that we were cousins; the word had lost all meaning at this point. What mattered was that we were in love. That he was hurting, and I was hurting but that we weren't _hurt_.

"Lauren," he whispered, although it sounded more like a vow. His forehead dropped onto mine, his breathing heavy. I placed a hand gently on his chest, feeling his heart beat ferociously underneath, my nose brushing against his as I turned my head slightly. After a prolonged pause, I took his hands in mine, entwining our fingers together and lead him slowly into the living room.

Reaching the sofa I pushed him down, lowering myself next to him, my legs curled over his. His strong arms went around my waist, his head burrowing into my neck as sobs began to rip from his chest.

"Joey," I whispered, angling myself so that I was leaning half against the back of the sofa and half against the arm of the chair. I wrapped my arms around his neck, pulling him closer to me so that he was almost lying across me. I pressed several kisses to the side of his forehead, just as he had done with me so many times. "It's okay, Joey."

He shook his head against my throat, his lips dragging against my skin. "It's not," was his strangled reply.

I ran my fingers through his short hair soothingly. I cradled his head against me as my lips feathered over his forehead again. I could feel myself grow stronger, my mind reacting to the need to be his rock this time round.

"It will be, baby," I said, thanking God that he was letting me comfort him.

We remained in the same position, curled up close together, until Joey's sobs started to die down. I traced a tear with the pad of my finger as it ran down his handsome face and brushed my hand through his hair again. He was staring forward unseeingly, his hand resting on the side of my waist under my jacket which I was still wearing.

As I realised this, I felt my phone vibrate in my pocket. Shifting slightly I managed to retrieve it, shrugging off my jacket as I did so, and read the text from Mum wanting to know if I'd made it to Joey's and if I was staying there. As I typed, Joey raised himself up, leaning back against the sofa and pulling me into his side. Throwing my phone onto the sofa beside me, I nuzzled my face into his shoulder, enjoying the way I fit so neatly under his muscular arm.

"Alice hates me," he said unexpectedly. "My little sister hates me." I looked up at him to see his eyes closed, head leant back against the back of the seat. I leant up and pressed a kiss under his jaw, resting my hand on his shoulder.

"No, she doesn't," I assured him. "She was torn up about what she said to you when I saw her just then."

Joey sniffed, his hand rubbing over his face. "Part of me wants her to be right. Part of me wants to still hate him. Part of me doesn't know why I'm upset."

I shifted over him, my knees on either side of his thighs. Now that my head was slightly above his I held his face in my hands firmly, forcing him to look at me. "Listen to me, Joey. You're upset because your Dad just died. Yeah, you might not have got on with him like a house on fire but he was the only Dad you ever knew and that means something. It's okay to grieve him, Joey. You don't always have to be the martyr with me."

He watched me for a moment, his expression weary, his hands resting lightly on my waist. "I love you," he said quietly, his hands coming up to my face, mirroring my actions.

"Love you, too," I replied, giving him a small smile as his thumbs brushed my cheeks.

"I didn't mean what I said before. I just couldn't face..." He trailed off, as I placed a finger over his lips.

"No. I know you didn't mean it. You don't have to explain yourself to me. God knows I've been there."

"I..." Joey began, swallowing as his hands brought my face closer to his, our foreheads resting atop one another's. "I do need you."

"You've got me," I whispered before I closed the miniscule distance between our lips, kissing him softly. It wasn't a rushed kiss; it wasn't building up to anything. It didn't need to. It was a way of showing how much we loved each other. One of his hands curled around my neck gently whilst one of mine held the back of his head.

Our lips danced against each other's, each of us lost in this small moment of peace in the midst of what had been the most horrifically chaotic Christmas. He sucked my top lip into his mouth before pulling away gently, his finger tracing along the line of the pendant necklace.

I changed my position, moving my legs so that they were draped across him again, and resting my face against his chest. I sighed as his arms went around me, feeling melancholy.

"Why does the rest of the world have to exist, eh?" I pondered, tiredness creeping up on me.

Joey didn't reply. He merely sighed, kissing the top of my head. I craned my neck to look at him, my hand holding his face. "Are you okay?" I asked, hoping my expression made it clear that I didn't mean in general.

He nodded, a very small smile curling his lips which he then crushed to mine briefly. "I am now."

I closed my eyes, snuggling into him and felt him pull me closer to him. It occurred to me belatedly that it must've been the early hours of the morning – I felt like I'd been awake for years. I could only imagine what Joey must've felt like.

After several minutes in which I think I drifted in and out of conciousness, one of his arms went under my knees, the other more securely around my back as he lifted me off the sofa.

"Where are we going?" I mumbled, a little incoherently.

"To bed," he stated. Under any other circumstances I probably would've found those two words incredibly sexy, but tonight we both knew it was an invitation not for sex, but for long awaited rest.

"I can walk, y'know," I quipped, my arms snaking round his neck.

"I think we've had enough drama for today without you falling downstairs, thanks," he replied, his morbid humour marred by the reminder of how actually morbid everything that had happened was. I lay my head back down on his broad shoulder, allowing him to carry me the rest of the way.

Having sorted ourselves out we ended up finally in bed, Joey's body spooned behind mine, his arm draped protectively round my waist. His other arm was wedged under the pillows, fingers entwined with mine.

"Thank you," he whispered into my neck, kissing it softly.

"For what?" I asked sleepily, squeezing his fingers and revelling in the warmth of his body.

"For standing up to me. For being here. For being stronger than me." He exhaled, his arm pulling me tighter against him. "I don't deserve you."

I scoffed, rolling my eyes and turning my head slightly. "Would you stop being ridiculous. I _love_ you. Can't we just leave it at that?"

He kissed my cheek quickly before I turned my head away. "For now," he replied. "I love you, babe."

I gave his fingers another squeeze and rested my arm atop his where it lay across my stomach before falling into a deep, much-needed sleep.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

The sound of a phone vibrating woke me up. I cracked an eye open and flinched as the morning light attacked my eyes. I could see my phone lying on the bedside table, Dad's name flashing across the screen.

I looked down at Joey whose body was now draped possessively over my own. He looked tired still, even in slumber. He hadn't slept easy in the night, waking up several times to check I was still there. His head was currently against my chest, one arm still draped over my stomach, his hand against my ribs under my top which had obviously ridden up during the night, the other tangled in my hair which was fanned out over the pillow.

I tried to reach for the phone without shifting him, but it was impossible; his weight, although half resting on the bed, was pushing me firmly down. I shuffled slightly, moving upwards as I reached out a hand and managed to just grip the phone in the tips of my fingers. The movement woke Joey up however, his face nuzzling into my skin just above the hem of my top before looking up at me sleepily as I answered the phone.

"Dad?" I asked nervously, knowing any reason for him to ring me this early couldn't be a good one.

"Lauren, you and Joey better come round as soon as you're up," he began.

"Why?" I exchanged a worried look with Joey who was listening in to the conversation.

"Kirsty's been arrested."

**A/n**

**Cue the duf duf! This was another tricky chapter. I re-wrote it several times but I think I'm finally happy with it. I found Joey so difficult to capture as we never really see him show his emotional side as much as we should do. Hopefully I did him justice. Thank you for all your reviews and support for this story, they mean so much to me. I love to hear what you think. :) See you soon!**


	11. Chapter 11

"What?" I asked, completely and utterly confused. Joey cocked his head to the side slightly, his brows furrowed slightly, his chin resting on my chest.

Dad sighed down the line, clearly distressed. "She's been arrested on suspicion of murder." There was murmuring in the background to which Dad uttered a short reply. "Look, can you just come home, please, Lauren? I don't want to discuss this over the phone."

Wide-eyed and open mouthed I mumbled an agreement and disconnected the call, my back falling onto the pillows as I chucked the phone away from me. I ran my finger lightly over the worry lines marring Joey's forehead. "Surely she can't have... I mean... Kirsty?" I soliloquised unevenly, concerned that Joey was going to freeze up on me again.

He proved me wrong however, lowering his head back onto my chest and closing his eyes. "Makes sense, I guess. She had a motive," he said quietly.

I couldn't help but be surprised at how calmly he had just taken this news. I scraped my fingers through his hair, as had become my usual habit when we were reclined like this. "I guess, yeah. You took that much more cavalier-like than I expected, though, Joe."

He shrugged his shoulders slightly, a humming noise issuing from his throat as I scratched my nails softly down his neck. "Not much point getting worked up anymore, is there? Can't change anything."

I nodded, sighing. That was one way of looking at it, I supposed. "What a mess, eh?"

He sniffed, his arms going around me tighter, his face burrowing into my chest. I watched him for a while, wishing I could make it all go away, change things. Change Derek's death, change the car crash, change the way I dealt with everything with alcohol. Going further back, if I was changing things, I'd change the fact that Mum had pushed Dad away and lied about her cancer. I'd change the fact that Dad had cheated so many times. I'd change so many things. The only thing I would keep the same was me and Joey.

"I'll tell Dad we're not coming till later, yeah?" I announced, taking in his exhausted features as I continued my ministrations through his hair.

"Why?" he asked, barely awake.

"Why'd you think?" I ran the backs of my fingers over his closed eyelids. "You're exhausted, Joey. If we go back there it's probably all gonna kick off again."

He breathed in deeply, dragging open his eyes and looking up at me as he pulled himself up into a sitting position. "I know. But Alice needs me. I need to talk to her."

I nodded, sitting up too and curling myself round one of his well-defined arms which was braced against the bed. I rested my head against the curve of his muscular shoulder. "Just promise me one thing?"

"What?" he asked, pressing a kiss to the top of my head.

"If it gets too much, don't just run out, yeah? Come and tell me. I'll come with you."

He twisted round slightly, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear. "Promise, baby."

We both showered and got dressed, neither of us bothering with breakfast; we didn't have much of an appetite. Whist waiting for Joey to come downstairs I had managed to force down a few sips of tea with extra sugar in it before my throat had closed up and I gave up, pushing it away from me. Instead I resorted to staring off into space, my mind coming up with all sorts of scenarios as to what on earth had happened with Kirsty and Derek.

Joey padded into the kitchen after several more minutes of my musings dressed in sweatpants and a black t-shirt. His hair was wet and messy, his muscles straining through the shirt and his facial expression adorable in its tiredness. It was completely inappropriate to think it, but he looked so hot.

I shook my head slightly, irritated with myself for always getting carried away at the wrong moments. Although, if I told him I'd thought of jumping him right there and then he would probably just smirk at me and flash me his panty-dropping smile, such is his overly egotistical but undeniably charming sense of humour.

"You ready then?" I questioned, getting up and slinging on my jacket.

"Yeah," he agreed, giving me a small smile. He looked nervous and I wagered that seeing Alice again was the cause.

"Alice will want to see you, Joey. It'll be okay." I took his hands in mine, giving them a reassuring squeeze. I reached up and pecked his lips once before leading him back to my house.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

I had left Joey and Alice alone in the living room to talk things out. Judging from the way she had thrown herself at her brother and broken down into tears again as soon we had walked in, I assumed they were going to be in there for a while and I didn't want to get in the way. Joey had enveloped her in a giant hug, picked her up and carried her to the sofa where they remained still. I was pleased that they were both dealing with this together rather than against one another.

Walking into the kitchen I found Mum bustling around distractedly as she often does when she is stressed. She greeted me calmly enough though, so I took a seat at the table, sensing the coast was clear for now of any more arguments.

"Where's Dad?" I asked after saying hi.

"At your Auntie Carol's. He'll be back soon. Him, Jack, Carol and Joey, if he wants to, need to go and identify the body." Mum's lips were pale as she spoke, the idea of viewing Derek's body not sitting easily with her.

I shuddered inwardly, the reality of the fact that he had actually died washing over me stronger than ever. The memory of my encounters with Derek was still just as menacing in his death as it was when he was still alive and a still very real threat.

"What's all this about Kirsty then?" I hedged carefully, unsure whether Mum would be the right person to mention this to.

She ran the dish cloth she was holding through her hands worriedly. "I know as much as you really, darlin'."

"Is it true though? They think she killed him?" I swallowed nervously, not really sure I wanted an answer to that question.

"Apparently." Mum sat down opposite me and put her head in her hands. It me a second to realise she was crying.

I inched my chair closer to table, leaning forward towards her. "Mum?"

"I'm sorry, darlin'," she sobbed, wiping her eyes whilst trying not to smudge her make-up. "I just... I just can't help but feel guilty."

I sat motionless for a moment, completely befuddled. "You've lost me," I said, watching as she recomposed herself after her brief emotional outburst.

"It's just, your Dad told me how ill she was. How easily upset she was." She looked up at me as if this answered my question. I shrugged one shoulder at her, making it clear I still had no idea what she was on about. She took a deep breath before continuing. "I said some really _horrible_ things to her, Lauren."

"No can blame you for that, Mum," I soothed, still confused as to what this had to do with Derek's death.

"But what if it's my fault she went after him, eh? What if the things me and your Dad said about how manipulative Derek was provoked her to lose control?"

I sighed, almost feeling my brain protest at more drama being added to the mix. "Mum, how can you even think that? You just said she was ill, yeah?" Mum nodded tearfully. "Then if she was gonna lose control she probably gonna do it anyway regardless of what you said to her. _You_ didn't kill him."

"I didn't pull the trigger, maybe. But I might have loaded the gun."

"She shot him?!" I said, my head whipping up.

Mum shook her head, a slight indulgent smile on her face despite her obvious sorrow. "No, Lauren. I was being metaphorical. I have no idea what she used."

I huffed sourly, crossing my arms, my ego a more than a little dented. "Jeez, sorry. But for all I knew she could've done!" I proclaimed defensively.

Mum's expression sobered up. "I know. Sorry."

We lapsed into silence for a bit before I spoke, wanting to make sure she wasn't going to start blaming herself for this now as well. That was the last thing she needed. "You know it's not your fault, don't you? If it was Kirsty who killed him, it wasn't anything to do with you."

She watched me for a long while obviously digesting what I had said.

"I mean it, Mum," I assured her, looking her straight in the eye. "It's not your fault. No one's gonna blame you."

She smiled at me, grasping my wrist gratefully. "Oh, Lauren. What would I do without you, eh?"

"You'd probably have a lot less drama in your life," I mumbled, giving her a small smile.

"Ha! I don't think I'm in any position to point the finger at people for being drama queens." She retrieved her hand, standing up and straightening out her apron. "I'm really proud of how you've dealt with everything recently, Lauren. I know there've been a few slip-ups but you've really impressed me."

I suppressed the urge to scoff, trying instead to accept the rare compliment. "Thanks," I mumbled, embarrassed.

"I'm sure Joey has made a world of difference but it's still you I'm proud." She winked at me as she mentioned Joey and I rolled my eyes, choosing not to answer her.

"Want some food, darlin'?" she asked suddenly, clearly sensing that I wanted to change the subject.

"Nah, I'm not really hungry. Feel a bit sick, to be honest." I pulled a face as I spoke, turning my face away from the loaf of bread she was currently buttering.

She spun round, her eyes narrowed suspiciously. "_Please_ tell me you're not pregnant, Lauren. I really can't deal with becoming a Grandma right now."

I sighed, pursing my lips in annoyance and mock glaring at her. "Mum, you see me take the pill every single day. I'm definitely not pregnant. I just don't want any food yet, alright? It's not exactly been the pleasantest of days recently, has it?"

She smiled sadly at me, her eyes wandering in the direction of the living room. "D'you reckon they're okay in there?"

I looked in the same direction, listening for any sound but hearing nothing. "Yeah. They'll be fine," I replied.

"I hope so," Mum said. "God knows this family's been through just about as much as it can take."

Just as she finished speaking, we heard keys turning in the lock of the front door indicating that Dad had returned with Uncle Jack and Auntie Carol.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

Joey decided against going with them to identify Derek's body, instead offering to take Alice back to the house so that she could pick up some of her stuff now that they had been given the okay to do so.

Whilst Dad had filled us in on the procedures on what was going to happen vis-à-vis a funeral, I had received a text from Lucy, asking me if I would go and talk to her. My first instinct had been to just ignore the text and ignore Lucy altogether after her behaviour last night. However Joey had noticed me reading the text from his position next to me, his arm slung naturally over my shoulders, his other resting at his side, his hand holding Alice's.

When everyone had started to disperse, Alice and Dad and everyone else getting ready to go he leaned down and spoke quietly in my ear. "You should go talk to her, babe."

I looked up at him, glad to see that although he still looked tired, he didn't look nearly as haunted as he had last night. I wound my arms around his waist, snuggling into him warmly. "Lucy can wait. I said I'd be here for you today."

His fingers tangled gently in my hair, pulling it over my shoulder. He then traced a line over the chain of my necklace slowly, his eyes captivating as he stared down at me. "Don't push your friends away because of me, Lauren."

I pulled my lip into my mouth uncertainly. It felt inconvenient to go see Lucy today, but then again, part of me felt like being the bigger person and meeting her halfway, assuming of course that she wanted to meet up so that she could apologise. Knowing Lucy, it could have just been to have a bit more of a whinge.

He reached a hand up and pulled my lip out from under my teeth with his thumb, watching as he did so with an unmistakable glint of hunger in his eyes. "Go on, baby. Me and Al'll be fine. Promise."

I leaned up and crushed my lips to his briefly before resting my forehead against his. "Okay," I whispered.

"Love you," he said quietly, looking at me intensely.

"Love you too." As I spoke, Alice popped her head around the door, smiling slightly as her eyes fell on us.

"Sorry," she said, her voice a lot stronger than it had been for a while. "I'm ready, Joey."

Joey nodded at her before giving me one last, lingering peck on the lips and following Alice out of the door.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

Lucy had greeted me somewhat stiffly at the door, sending a muffled 'hello' in my direction before trotting towards the kitchen and leaving me to close the door. I followed her in and stood mutely, arms crossed and hip jutting out in irritation whilst she put the kettle on and started to make tea. I was determined not to be the first to break the silence; she had asked me over, after all.

It wasn't until we were seated on the sofa that she finally decided to talk.

"So, you and Joey?" Her tone was short but not altogether unfriendly.

I nodded at her, my fingers automatically finding the necklace around my neck. "Me and Joey," I repeated, liking the sound of the words as I said them.

I could tell she was trying to reign her temper in, trying to chose her next words carefully. "But...he's a player, Lauren. How'd you know he's not just playing you like he did me?"

"It's not like that with us. It's different. We're in love," I finished simply.

"Yeah, I thought I was in love though," she replied, a little pettily.

"Yes but the difference here, Lucy, is that he loves me back." I tried to soften my tone a little, knowing she would end up hurt by my words. "You barely knew him, Luce. You just always saw him as your knight in shining armour. He was more like an object to you than a person."

She scowled at me, pouting her lips and huffing. "He was not! How would you know anyway? How close did you want us to get in a couple of months? Sorry we can't all be as close as _cousins_."

I rolled my eyes. It was obviously going to take a long time for her to get that out of her system. "You met him the very same day as me remember? You've known him for the same amount of time that I have."

"He _lived_ with me," she tried, her lip curling petulantly. "We got to know each other pretty well, if you know what I mean."

I wrinkled my nose in distaste, really not wanting that image in my brain. The fact that Joey had likely slept with a lot of girls couldn't be helped, but I wasn't going to deny that the Lucy thing bothered me, even if it had meant more to her than it had to him. He really shouldn't have let it go on so long with her.

"He never tucked your hair behind your ear though, did he?" It was a low blow, recalling what Lucy had discussed with Mum before the Hen Party about knowing whether Joey loved you or not by seeing whether he tucked your hair behind your ear. I saw a bit of pain flash through her eyes and felt bad instantly. It wasn't her fault she'd fallen head over heels for Joey Branning.

I turned to face her properly on the sofa, sighing. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

She gave me a look that said she agreed wholeheartedly, defensive vibes rolling off her.

"I do love him though, Luce," I said sincerely, looking her straight in the eye. "You said it yourself at the wedding. You mentioned how happy I seemed." I saw a look of recognition flit across her face, quickly followed by resignation. "It's because of _him_, Luce. He makes me happy."

She watched me for a long minute, obviously deciding whether to have another hissy fit or accept what I was telling her.

Eventually she sighed, her tense position relaxing a little. "You make him happy too."

"Huh?" I said, surprised at this new angle.

"Remember when I told you about when he came back to mine after the R&R that night just after the accident? He said he couldn't do anything with me because he was in love with someone else." He lip was jutting out a little as she spoke but overall her countenance has become much softer. "He looked so miserable and lost. Obviously it was you he wanted, not me."

I did remember, and I remembered how confused and angry I had been, watching Joey go over and flirt with her whilst leaving me at the bar by myself, still hurting from the accident and his rejection. How had we both been so stupid? We'd come so far over the last week that it was hard to imagine us as the same people.

Neither of us spoke again for a long while, just staring into our respective mugs of tea. It wasn't until I felt my phone buzz in my pocket that I moved.

"Is that from Joey?" Lucy asked, a kindly curious glint in her eye.

"Yeah, why?" I replied, tapping out a quick reply telling him that I'd be back soon.

"You smiled," she said simply. "You never smile for anyone really. Not properly anyway."

I stared at her for a moment before sniggering as I stood up, stowing my phone into my pocket. "Don't be so cheesy, Luce. Seriously. It's not cool."

She rolled her eyes at me this time, tutting as she did so. "You're both as bad as each other, you and Joey."

"Whatever. Thanks for the tea," I grumbled as I made my way to the door, a secret smile creeping over my face. A big part of me selfishly loved that Joey only dropped his bad-boy exterior for me. It made me have even more confidence in our relationship knowing that he trusted me enough to let his guard down with me.

"Lauren?" Lucy called as I reached the door. She had followed me into the hallway, coming to a halt beside me. "We're okay aren't we?"

I smiled at her, nudging her shoulder with mine. "As long as you're not being a cow anymore, then yeah, 'course we are."

Lucy let out a small chuckle before giving me a quick hug. It was still a little awkward, a bit of tension still not quite cleared between us. But I was hopeful she would come round eventually.

"Hope everything goes okay about Derek," she said, looking unusually solemn for Lucy.

"Yeah, me too," I replied. "I'll see you around, yeah?"

She nodded at me before I turned and made my way back across the square, a little of the weight on my chest lifted knowing that I hadn't lost one of my best friends.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

Mum had decided that we were going to have a quiet, blissfully uneventful family night. She had insisted that we were to have a small interlude from all the stress of the murder investigation; leave all that for tomorrow. It was probably a good idea because I was sure that if Alice cried anymore she was going to be seriously dehydrated.

It actually turned out to not go too badly. There was undeniable unease between us all, mostly caused by the ongoing confusion as to what actually happened to Derek and only slightly because of the fact that Gran had helped to cook. On the whole, though, it did seem to help restore a bit of calm and normality to the family.

At the end of the night, Joey had pulled me aside as I made my way into the kitchen whilst helping Mum clear up. His arms went firmly around my waist, his lips going straight to my ear.

"Can we go now?" he asked. He sounded tired but determined at the same time.

I juggled the plates I was holding in my hands so as to free one of them. Pulling back slightly I looked into his eyes and saw a shadow of the hunger I had noticed before return to them.

"Had enough?" I said, pecking his lips lightly.

"Not of you," I replied, his arms winding a little tighter around me.

I grinned, my free hand resting on his broad shoulder. "Sure you want to leave Alice?"

He nodded, kissing my cheek softly. "She's practically asleep already. She'll be alright. I just want to be with you now."

"Well I'm not going to argue with that," I responded before capturing his lips with mine. "Give me 5 minutes and I'll be ready."

He pulled my face back to his, kissing me passionately until my legs felt a little weak. I pulled my lips from his, breathing heavily. "Don't start what you don't intend to finish," I warned.

He looked at me, his eyes dark and burning. "Oh, I fully intend to finish this, babe."

I think I almost whimpered from the intensity of the look he was giving me. "You better," I quipped breathlessly before pulling away from him and walking into the kitchen. It was going to be an eventful night after all, apparently.

**A/n**

**Firstly, sorry to leave it there, but don't worry, Chapter 12 picks up where Joey and Lauren left off. ;) Secondly, thank you SO much for the response to the last chapter - your reviews mean so much to me. I tried not to make this chapter too heavy as I didn't want two quite weighty ones in a row. Also, as you can see, I decided to make Lucy nice - in my opinion she has the potiential to be a much better friend to Lauren and a lot less whiny than they often make her out to be. See you soon!**

**ps. Jauren scenes in EE lately = almost too cute to deal with it.**


	12. Chapter 12

We practically pounced on each other as soon as we arrived at the house, the door slamming shut behind us as Joey's lips descended roughly onto mine. I reciprocated the kiss just as fiercely, my hands clawing at his shoulders, his own pressing firmly into my waist.

I let out a shocked, breathless squeak as his hands suddenly moved lower, going under my thighs and gripping them tightly. I felt my back hit the wall as he lifted me up easily, my legs automatically hooking around his hips. His strong body was flush against mine, our lips still battling against each others.

I pushed his jacket from his shoulders, clumsily trying rolling the sleeves down his muscular arms without breaking the kiss. He let go of my waist momentarily to help me fling the jacket off his shoulders, only the pressure of his hips against mine holding me against the wall. We both groaned as the movement ground our crotches against each others.

Joey pulled my top lip between both of his, his tongue breaking into my mouth greedily. I scraped my nails down the back of his neck earning a guttural growl from him. He released my lips, looking at me intensely, his eyes burning with lust as he held my face in his hands, watching me gasp for breath for a second.

He then slid his hands down my neck and to my shoulders, making short work of removing my coat. I shifted my hips against his a little desperately, feeling how hard he was through his jeans. His hands crept under my t-shirt, his strong fingers against my ribs.

"Ugh," I gasped as his lips devoured my neck maddeningly. I felt him grip the edges of my shirt and begin to lift it up my body. "Joey," I breathed as I lifted my arms up so that he could pull it over my head.

"What, baby?" he mumbled, his voice gravelly. He let my top fall to the floor, his forehead falling onto my own, watching as his fingers ran appreciatively over my now exposed cleavage.

I shivered under his touch, willing myself to speak rather than just moan. "Shouldn't we go upstairs? What if Poppy's here with Fatboy? What if they see us?"

His hands gripped my waist suddenly, his eyes snapping to mine. "I don't share," he growled. His lips descended on to mine again, the need in the kiss intensified tenfold.

I smirked into the kiss, turned on even more by the possessive look in his eyes. He's so sexy when he's jealous.

"Me neither. So take me upstairs, eh, caveman?" I said, nipping at his bottom lip with my teeth as I pulled back, my hands curling around fistfuls of his jumper.

"Certainly, madam," he replied cockily, his hands gripping my thighs once more as he carried me up the stairs. I kissed my way down his neck as we moved, coaxing an impatient groan out of him as I bit lightly at base of his neck.

Joey dropped me back to the floor as soon as we were in his room, his hands roaming over my back greedily. I ran mine under his jumper, sliding it upwards as I did so.

"Why are you still wearing this?" I demanded between kisses, watching as his muscles rippled as he lifted it over his head and flung it to the floor. "Mmm, much better," I crooned into his ear, my fingers splayed over that incredible, Adonis-like chest of his.

I pulled his face back down to mine, my fingers running through his short hair. He rested his hands against the curve of my hips before his index fingers curled around the belt loops of my jeans and he pulled me against him roughly. I groaned into the kiss, desperate for more.

I felt my legs hit the back of the bed suddenly, unaware that we had been moving towards it. Gripping my waist, he tipped me backwards so that only my top half lay against the mattress. He then ran his hands down my body until he reached my still jean-clad calves, holding them in his hands tightly.

"Do you have any idea how fucking sexy you look right now, Lauren?" His voice was deeper than usual, the sound of it going straight to my core.

I looked up at him, thinking I could say the exact same thing about him as my eyes raked over his flawlessly defined torso. I sat up on my elbows, challenging him with my gaze to move. He heeded my warning, his fingers unbuttoning my jeans hurriedly before pulling them down my legs and flinging them onto the fast-growing pile of clothes on the floor.

I sat up once they were off and pressed small, open-mouthed kisses to his ribs as my hands slid down his washboard stomach. Reaching the button of his own jeans I teased him a bit, making a point of unzipping the zip excruciatingly slowly, my hand brushing softly against his hard length straining underneath the material. He groaned deeply, his hips moving forward slightly of their own accord.

Freed of his jeans, we were both down to only our underwear. He pushed me back onto the bed once again, crawling over me, his eyes predatory.

He captured my lips with his as his hands slid down my front, coming to a stop on the straps of my bra which he pinged lightly into my skin. "Why are you still wearing this?" he asked, repeating my words from only moments ago.

I arched my back off of the bed as his hands crept underneath me, fumbling with the clasp of my bra for a second before he unburdened me of it. He flicked my nipple with his finger lightly, throwing me that delicious smirk of his as it hardened from the touch. I mewled lowly, my hands grappling at his shoulders just for want of something to with them.

One of his hands came up to my face, holding it gently, his thumb on my lip as his other hand lavished attention to my breasts. I ran my hands down his neck, my fingers pressing into his skin as I kissed his thumb, touching the tip of my tongue to it and earning a rough growl and a twitch of his hips.

He looked up at me darkly, lips dragging along the skin of my breasts. I watched as he slid his hands down my neck, over the necklace, over my breasts, over my stomach and stopping at my hips.

"So fucking beautiful," he mumbled, holding my gaze as he ran a finger down my centre over the top of my panties. I moaned, lifting my hips to his hand, craving more friction. He repeated the action several more times, applying a little more pressure with each stroke until I gasped impatiently, my head crashing back against the pillows.

"Please, Joey." Apparently he didn't need asking twice as I felt my panties be removed with impressive speed, removing his boxers at the same time.

He crawled back over me, kissing me hard. I threw my arms around his neck, feeling his erection press into my hip and revelling in the fact that I made him feel like that.

I scraped my nails lightly down his side and across his front before grasping him in my hand. He groaned into our kiss, his hand stilling on my neck. I stroked him slowly a few times, gripping him tightly and feeling him twitch in my palm.

"Fuck, Lauren," he whispered, his breath hot against my neck. I could feel my pulse quicken in my neck under his fingers which were pressing lightly on my pulse points. The sensuous feeling only turned me on even more. I twisted my palm over his length one more time before his hand shot down and gripped my wrist as he growled in my ear.

"If you keep doing that this isn't gonna last very long."

I grinned at him, pulling his lips back to mine, my legs coming up to cradle his hips. He let go of my wrist, squeezing my breasts with his now-free hand. I groaned from the sensation, rolling my hips against his, urging him to move. He ran his length over my now soaking folds, lust in his eyes and desperation in his kiss.

"Joey," I whimpered against his jaw, the pressure in the base of my stomach coiled more tightly than I could ever remember.

He pushed into me with one swift thrust, our hips pressing against each others as he sheathed himself completely inside me. I felt my eyes roll back into my head at the feeling, my lips stilling against his.

He held himself still for a lingering moment, both of us breathing sharply, adjusting to the onslaught of sensations. I could feel him twitching inside of me, his arms shaking slightly with the effort of holding still. I clenched my walls around him, desperate for him to move and muffling his deep groan with a passionate kiss.

"Ugh," he moaned, my nails scraping through the short hair at the back of his neck as he picked up a tantalising rhythm. I could feel every inch of him as he slowly pulled almost all the way out before slamming back into me.

"Ah," I gasped, his name tumbling from my lips as his hand found my clit, teasing the pad of his thumb over it in time with his thrusts.

I could feel the spring inside of my wind tighter and tighter as his thrusts became shorter and faster, losing control of the precise rhythm he'd started off with.

His lips attacked mine, our tongues mingling together, my hands digging into his shoulder blades, my knees pressing into his sides.

"I'm so close," I warned, my voice strangled, my lips swollen against his.

He pressed a kiss against my mouth firmly, his hand sliding under the back of my head and supporting it gently. "Come for me, baby."

He thrust deeply into me several more times before my orgasm hit, bone-shaking waves of pleasure racking through my body from my head to my toes. He followed right behind me, growling deeply and collapsing onto me, his head falling into the crook of my neck.

We breathed unevenly for several minutes, Joey's solid body flush and warm against mine, our legs tangled together. I wound my arm around his shoulders weakly, my fingers softly treading through the hair behind his ear.

He released a deep breath, nuzzling his head against my throat, his fingers entwining with mine. "Love you," he said, kissing the hollow of my throat very lightly.

"I love you too, Joey," I replied quietly, feeling my heart expand with emotion. We'd been through so much over the last few days, so many dramas and so many emotions. It was a relief on more than just a sexual level to just be together like this. Nothing between us, material or otherwise.

I opened my eyes and looked down at him. His eyes were closed, his face pressed against my skin. His arms were bent at the elbows, resting beside him, one hand still holding mine, the other simply resting against the mattress. I ran my fingers over his closed eye-lids, coaxing him to look up at me.

"Hey," I said softly. "You okay?"

His gaze met mine and I was thankful that, beyond the exhaustion built up over the last few days, he looked more like his old self than ever. I was sure there would still be worries over Derek's death, but I felt like we had turned over a new leaf. Not moved on yet, obviously, but progressed forward, which was a start at least.

"Yeah," he replied, giving me a small smile. "Thank you."

"Anytime," I said, a smile in my tone, but knowing he knew I meant it on a serious level as well. I would always be here for him when he needed me.

After we had cleaned up, we snuggled back into bed, his arm going around me protectively. I rested my head on his chest, running my thumb over his hand, our fingers linked together.

"Everything's gonna be okay, ain't it?" I mused quietly, my eyes heavy with tiredness.

"''Course it is, baby." He squeezed my waist lightly, his arm pulling my close to him. I let my eyes close and succumbed to the comforting feeling of being in his arms. "Sleep tight, Lauren."

I smiled at his cheesy line, wrinkling my nose lightly and pushing my face against his chest. "You too, baby."

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

In the morning it was a relief to wake up naturally for a change and not to some new instalment in the latest Branning drama. Joey was still asleep when I woke up, giving me a chance to ogle at him shamelessly. His head was turned towards mine on the pillow, his features relaxed and his lip pouting a little bit. He looked adorable.

One of his arms was stretched above his head, the other still slung around my waist, the weight of it against my back extremely comforting. My shirt had ridden up slightly during the night and I could feel the bare skin of his hard stomach against the softness of mine.

I started to trace my index finger along the sinewy muscles of his arm when he stirred underneath me, his fingers tickling my waist slightly.

"Mornin'," he mumbled, rubbing his face with his hand.

I leaned up and pecked his lips, smiling at him. "Hey."

He reached up and tucked my hair behind my ear. I leaned into his touch, enjoying the relaxed moment.

"Can we just stay in bed please?" I asked, pouting at him a little.

He smirked at me, stroking my cheek with his thumb. "I wish, baby."

We chatted for a little longer before finally willing ourselves out of bed. We had breakfast and got ready to return to my house, hoping to find out once and for all what had happened to Derek.

I stopped in front of the door, stalling for a moment.

"What's wrong?" Joey asked me, looking concerned, his hand grasping my shoulder gently.

I looked up at him. "Did you mean what you said last night? That everything's going to be okay?"

He held my gaze for a long moment before lowering his lips to mine and kissing me softly. "Yes," he said confidently.

I nodded at him, leaning my forehead against his and hoping to God that when we came out the other end of this tunnel he would be proved right.

**A/n**

**So, apparently I caused a bit of a commotion with the ending of the last chapter? Hope this one didn't end up disappointing! As always, thank you for your reviews - I really love to hear what you think. See you in the next few days when we'll get some answers about what happened to Derek. Have a good weekend! :)**


	13. Chapter 13

Several days had passed since that morning and I was finally starting to feel the same confidence that Joey felt.

The police had come to the house and confirmed that Kirsty had been the one to murder Derek. They estimated, after discussing with each of us the events of that night, that she had waited around until she was sure he was alone and had gone over to confront him about everything that had happened in terms of their corrupted correspondence over the last few months.

There didn't appear to have been a struggle, so they reckoned that Derek had let her into the house willingly enough and had likely allowed her to get more and more wound up until she reached breaking point. Joey, Dad and Uncle Jack agreed that he probably would have continued to spin stories up until the last moment and made things a hell of a lot worse; forever in denial about the immorality of his actions.

The post-mortem confirmed that Kirsty had managed to hit Derek over the back of the head with a bottle of whiskey. It was a disturbing image to think that the thing that killed him was often the thing we saw in his hand. The only saving grace of it all was that it was apparently a very sudden death.

As horrific as the last few days had been, and as horrific as it was to think about however upset Derek must have caused Kirsty to become to end up reacting in such a way, the situation had actually brought the family closer than ever. Mum and Dad were getting on, as were Dad and his other siblings. Alice and Joey were closer than ever, whatever tension between them from Alice's angry outburst just after Derek's death was water under the bridge. And me and Joey were growing closer and stronger every day.

We were currently sat on the living room floor next to each other, various CDs, records and cassette tapes spread out before us.

"Just pick one, Al," Joey groaned, leaning back against the sofa and chucking one of the CDs he was holding back onto the pile. They were trying to decide on music for the funeral tomorrow.

"You're supposed to be helping me!" she replied, huffing.

Joey raised an eyebrow at me before turning back to his sister. "Well, we've been trying to do just that for the last hour but everything we suggest you don't like it. You're impossible, Al."

She gave him a long, irritated look, her lips pursed before looking at me and speaking sarcastically. "I really don't know what you see him, Lauren."

I sniggered, amused at them both, before reaching up and pecking the side of Joey's lips. He turned into the kiss, his lips moving softly against mine, his hand coming up to cup my face.

"Ugh, honestly. I don't know what my brother's thinking allowing you two to get away with _that_ under his roof." Auntie Carol's voice came from the doorway. She had obviously slipped in without any of us noticing. Her and the rest of the family, and probably the rest of Walford given how fast news tends to travel around here, knew about me and Joey now.

We pulled apart, both of us rolling our eyes. We didn't care one iota what our stuck-up relative thought. Auntie Carol had kicked up the most fuss when she had found out about mine and Joey's relationship, claiming it was disgusting and inappropriate, especially straight after Derek's death.

However, just as I was about to tell her just how much I didn't care what she thought, Alice beat me to it.

"If you can't stand to be around two people who are actually happy together then you know where the door is." Alice's tone was nonchalant but her gaze was sharp.

I turned to her and grinned massively, impressed, thankful and a little proud at her standing up for us. Joey took my hand and entwined our fingers before bringing my hand to his lips and kissing the back of it. I swooned a little at the action, an inadvertent smile turning up the corners of my lips.

Auntie Carol's mouth snapped shut, shocked at being spoken to in such a way by Alice Branning of all people. She sneered slightly before leaving the room, slamming the door childishly behind her.

"Told you Alice can be scary," Joey whispered in my ear, his eyes twinkling.

I laughed lightly, immensely grateful that we had at least Alice on our side. Not that anyone had dared be out-right against us, apart from Auntie Carol of course. Everyone had seemed shocked, naturally, but once we explained to them exactly what we had told Mum and Dad when we first told them, that it's not like we grew up together, they seemed to let it go. They weren't exactly jumping for joy and congratulating us, but at least they weren't lighting any pitchforks and chasing out of town.

Alice suddenly pushed the pile closest to her away, sighing. "Let's just get out of here. I want a walk. I need some daylight."

Joey looked up surprised. This was the first time since Derek's death that Alice had actually _wanted_ to do anything. "You sure, Al?"

She nodded, smiling and getting up of the floor. "Yeah. C'mon, I think we could all do with a break." She looked at me for encouragement, obviously hoping I could sway Joey in a supportive direction.

"Suits me." I wrinkled my nose in mock disgust. "Anything to get me away from the remains of this seriously bad music collection. Talk about bad taste," I mumbled, before realising that I was being a bit insensitive. "No offense..."

Alice raised an eyebrow at me, leaving the room ahead of us. I looked at Joey, pulling an apologetic face and shrugging. He merely laughed at me, grabbing my hand and pulling me into his side, kissing the top of my head.

"C'mon then, Drama Queen," he said, his arm going firmly round my shoulders as we followed Alice out of the room.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

We ended up taking Oscar to a park not too far away. The walk had been quiet at first, Alice turning somewhat subdued again, her mind wandering back to the funeral tomorrow. However Oscar's enthusiasm towards the playground did appear to cheer her up eventually and she slowly perked again, the fresh air adding some much needed colour to her cheeks.

Alice was pushing Oscar on the swings whilst I sat on Joey's lap on the swing seat next to Oscar's. Despite my several layers of clothing I had gotten cold as we walked round and so I had snuggled up to Joey as soon as we had stopped at the swings.

"Y'know, if I was to send a photo of you two right now to Mum I don't think she'd believe you're the same Joseph Branning," Alice mused, a small smile on her face as she took in our embrace. My legs were swung across his, my arms around his waist under his open jacket which he was keeping wrapped close around me, one had splayed supportively on my back, the other wrapped round the chain of the swing.

I looked up at him, my face still on his chest. "Yeah, _Joseph_. Does Mama Joey even know about us, by the way?"

Joey sat up a bit straighter, shifting me closer to him. "Yeah, she knows. She's known for ages actually," he added, sounding a little bit uncomfortable.

Alice's mouth dropped open, pausing Oscar's swing for a moment. "What?!"

Joey shrugged noncommittally. "Well, y'know, she noticed something was up after the accident and dragged it out of me. You know what Mum's like, she wouldn't drop it."

Alice leaned over and shoved against his arm, her expression a little petulant as she recommenced pushing Oscar. "Oh, so you told _Mum_ about it. You hardly ever even see her these days! _I _asked you hundreds of times what was wrong and you told me nothing!"

Joey looked down at me, his eyebrows raised and cheeks dimpled in amusement. I chuckled, nuzzling my face into his jumper as he looked back at his sister. "Well...sorry, Al. But you're my sister. It's weird. It's not like you talked to me about that idiot Anthony, is it?"

Alice rolled her eyes. "I would've done if I hadn't been scared you were going to kill him every time you were in the same room together."

Joey sniffed, his voice a little gravelly as he spoke. "Yeah, well, I still want to kill him a little bit."

"Just so I know, are you going to want to kill every man I date, Joey?" Alice asked in a resigned tone.

"Yes," he replied simply. "No one is good enough for you."

I laughed at Alice's withering expression, taking pity on her. I sat up in Joey's arms and gripped his face in my left hand.

"You listen here, Joey Branning. A. You're gonna give Alice a break and let her date whoever she wants. B . You're definitely not gonna kill anyone because if you do, _I _will kill _you_. Leaving me whilst you're in prison is no option, got it?"

Joey held my gaze steadily for a good minute, the weight behind my words suddenly sinking in as the reality of the closeness of the court hearing hit home. We were confident, thanks to Uncle Jack's help, that Joey would get away with nothing worse than a suspended sentence, but the doubt and worry was still there, gnawing at my conscience. I couldn't lose him for something _I _did.

Joey's hand rubbed my back comfortingly as he moved forward and claimed my lips in a soft kiss. As he pulled away he caught my gaze again, his eyes piercing. "Okay." He leaned his face into my palm, my hand now cupping his face rather than gripping it. "It's all gonna be okay."

There was so much conviction in his tone it made my heart ache; if only he could know that for sure. I ran my thumb over his face, studying his handsome features.

Alice cleared her throat delicately, her expression worried. "Is this about the hearing?"

I nodded, returning her concerned expression. Joey's arms pulled me back down securely into his body, his lips against my forehead.

"Stop worrying, Lauren. Worrying ain't gonna help." I curled my fingers tightly around the lapel of his jacket as if by doing so I could tether him to me forever. "I mean it," he insisted, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear.

I heard Alice breathe in sharply and we both looked round at her. She was watching us, wide-eyed. "You really are in love aren't you?"

Me and Joey looked at each other, my hands coming to rest on his broad shoulders. "Yep," I said, smiling at him. He grinned back at me, his eyes twinkling, his hands holding my waist tightly.

"Yeah. I love her, Al." His voice was soft and compelling, so unlike the drawl he tended to use when speaking to most people.

Alice stood silent for a second before she squealed, flinging her arms round both us and crushing me into Joey's chest.

"Woah, calm down, Al. Let's try not to squish my girlfriend, yeah?" Joey said, a smile in his voice, his strong arm winding around my waist to stop me slipping sideways. I felt a thrill go through me on hearing the words girlfriend leave his lips; he'd never outright referred to me as his girlfriend before.

"Sorry." Alice laughed, stepping back. She took Joey's hand, swinging it in the air between them. "I'm really happy for you."

Joey squeezed her fingers whilst pressing a kiss to my cheek. "Thanks, Al."

We sat on the swings for a bit longer, enjoying each other's company until Oscar had had enough. Walking back to the house I linked my hand with Joey's, his words still echoing through my head. It wasn't so much that, what with everything that had happened with Dad and Kirsty and Derek, the court hearing had slipped right to the back of my head, but just that I hadn't really had a chance to acknowledge the emotions the thought of it stirred up in me.

I gripped Joey's hand tighter, sighing and revelling in how small my hand felt in his. All I wanted was to be with him, and even though we had never been so close, I felt like we had also never been so close to having everything ripped away from us.

**A/n**

**So, some cute Joey/Lauren and Alice moments. Thought we should have a cute chapter before the funeral. :) Not long left of this story now! Only 2, possibly 3, more chapters, depending on how long they end up. Thank you SO much for your reviews - it makes me so happy to know that you're enjoying my little story. See you in a few days for Derek's funeral. :)**

**ps. What did everyone think of yesterdays EE episode. So many people on tumblr seem to hate it but I thought it was good. David really has playing Joey down to a T.**


	14. Chapter 14

I woke up to the feel of Joey fidgeting beside me, his arm brushing against mine as he turned. I knew immediately that it wasn't morning as, not only was it was still pitch black in the room, I felt like I'd hardly been asleep longer than an hour or two. I turned my head to see the time illuminated by the alarm clock on Joey's bedside table. It was only three am.

"Sorry," Joey mumbled from beside me, his hand moving to rest on my side. I rolled over to see him watching me apologetically. His hair was a tousled mess, eyes completely wide awake. "I didn't mean to wake you up."

He had obviously been tossing and turning for a while as the covers were all tangled around both of our bodies. I reached out a hand brushed my thumb over his eyebrow.

"You couldn't sleep then?" I asked, my voice a bit croaky.

He shook his head on the pillow before rolling onto his back, throwing his arms over his face and sighing distractedly. "Can't get what's coming today out of my head, can I? I keep imagining him in his coffin. All cold and dead. No arrogant smirk on his face. No arguments. No threats. Nothing. It's not right. It just don't seem right."

I snuggled closer to him, curling my cold fingers round his warm wrist and pulling one of his hands away from his face. I pulled his arm around my shoulders as I settled myself next to him, my head propped up on one hand. His body was radiating heat despite the temperature in the room; it made me shiver as I rested my other arm across his chiselled chest, my hand over his heartbeat.

"It was never going to be easy, burying your Dad." I wasn't really sure what to say to make him feel better. What _do_ you say to someone who is grieving a father they hated?

He didn't respond any further, simply closing his eyes and sighing through his nose. I curled a little closer to him, the hand that was propping up my head dropping to the pillow. I tangled my fingers in his short hair and massaged his scalp lightly whilst my other hand cupped his face, my thumb resting under his square jaw.

I leaned down and kissed his forehead softly, then his eyelids, then his cheeks and finally his lips. When I pulled back he was watching me, an unreadable expression on his face. One of his hands came up and gently pushed large section of hair which had fallen in front of my face over my shoulder. His other hand moved to cup the back of my neck as he brought my face down to his.

I sighed as our lips met tenderly, his hand grazing down my neck and along the strap of my top. I leaned over him more closely as he sucked my lip into his mouth, my hand clenching gently onto his solid bicep.

Joey's arm then wound around my waist and he pulled me on top of his body. He broke our kiss as I repositioned myself over him, his lips travelling down under my jaw as his fingers splayed over my sides under my top.

"Ah!" I moaned throatily, as he sucked on a particularly sensitive spot on my neck. I shuffled against him slightly and felt an impressive bulge against my hip.

I pulled back slightly, my hands cupping his face, both of us breathing heavily. "Joey, isn't this a bit...inappropriate? Y'know, after what you just said?" I tried to sound serious but the need in my voice contradicted my words.

One of his hands slid up my back, pushing my top up along the way. "Not if we both want to do this." He held my gaze as he spoke, his nose brushing against mine as he moved to peck the side of my lips.

I held myself above him, leaning my weight on my forearms, my hands moving back to his face. I watched him for a second before speaking, quickly losing myself in his scorching gaze.

"Joey, I can't make it all go away. I can only distract you." I shifted against him again, my nails scraping lightly down his neck. "I don't want you to regret this."

He nodded at me, his lips capturing mine briefly before pulling my top up over my shoulders and off my head. I shivered at the sudden loss of clothing, my nipples puckering automatically against his naked chest. He ran his hands up my back warmly as his lips reclaimed mine.

"Lauren, I just need you," he mumbled against my lips, his hips shifting against mine. "I need to feel something else. I need to feel you."

He rolled us over, his body covering mine completely. My hands came to rest on his muscular shoulders, my head raised up on the pillow, lips mere inches from Joey's.

"I love you," I whispered.

"Love you too," he replied, the fingers of his left hand tangling into my hair as his lips moved skilfully against mine.

Several long, exquisitely torturous minutes later, we were a panting, satisfied mess tangled up in the bed sheets. Joey was lay on his side beside me, his face pressed into my neck, occasionally pressing small, lazy kisses to the spot where moments ago he had muffled feral groans. He had one arm slung above my head on the pillows, the other resting on my waist, his arm a soft pressure against my stomach.

I had that delicious boneless feeling as I lay there, my arms curled around Joey's neck. I was glad that even at such a horrendous time we could find comfort and safety in each other. As I traced a finger back and forth along the curve of his shoulder blade, I felt his breathing even out some, his body finally relaxing.

"Try and get some sleep, Joey," I encouraged, running my fingers lightly under his eyes.

He looked up at me, his expression endearing. "Only if I can dream about you."

I grinned sleepily at him. "Smooth," I noted, before turning more sedate, the things he had told me before not gone from my mind. "If dreaming about me helps, then do it. If it doesn't, I'll be here if you wake up again."

He watched me unsurely for a moment; he looked so young it made my heart ache. Obviously he wasn't used to being looked after. He eventually lowered is face back down and pulled me in closer to his body with the arm that was resting on my tummy.

I ran my fingers through his hair rhythmically until he finally closed his eyes and drifted off, sleep claiming me too not long after.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

The funeral had gone about as well as it could do. Other than Auntie Carol having a whinge over some letter that Alice had found in Derek's bedroom and had given to her just before the service, everyone seemed to be happy enough just to pay their respects to Derek, even if they hadn't particularly liked him.

Joey had put his guard up somewhat before and during the service, being his usual distant, abrupt self with anyone who braved coming to speak to him. He feigned disinterest for the most part but I knew inside it was a different story; every now and then catching my gaze with that same heartbreaking look from last night.

After the service everyone made their way to The Vic, me, Joey and Alice being some of the last ones to arrive. Now that we were out of the crematorium people seemed to feel they had more of a right to glare at us as we walked in, hand in hand. I glared back at them, completely uninterested in what they had to say.

Dad walked over to us as we reached the bar, patting Joey once on the back and slinging an arm over my shoulders. "Alright?"

"Yeah, thanks," I replied, Joey nodding stoically beside me whilst Alice merely offered a small, watery smile. Joey's arm pulled her closer into his side, his hand squeezing her arm lightly.

"Everyone here already?" I asked Dad, looking around his arm and seeing Mum, Abi and Gran sat in the corner with Uncle Jack and Sharon. Gran appeared to be mid-way through a full-blown rant, her wine glass swaying precariously in her hand. "Exactly how hammered _is_ Gran?!" I raised an eyebrow, looking back round at Dad who had ordered some drinks.

"Awful, ain't it?" Dad mumbled grimly. He then addressed Joey, an apologetic look on his face. "Tan says to tell you sorry about Cora, by the way. We did _try_ and stop her doing that speech."

Joey waved a hand, a slightly amused smile suddenly curling his lips. "Didn't bother me. She only told the truth. Gotta respect that, eh?"

"If you say so, Joe," Dad said, shaking his head in Gran's direction. It was nice to see an easier interaction between Joey and Dad again. After finding out about Kirsty things had been a bit awkward; Dad had after all been the one to have brought Kirsty into Derek's life. As Joey had previously summarised though, it wasn't Dad's fault that Derek manipulated her and that she snapped.

Sitting down at the table next to Dad's, we placed our drinks down and got comfy. Alice curled up on the back sofa-seat whilst I sat next to Joey, our sides touching, his arm over the back of my chair.

"Don't let anyone give you any grief, yeah?" Dad said, inclining his head to pub in general from which we were obviously attracting some overly-interested looks.

"Wouldn't dream of it, Dad," I said, winking at him. "I'll just them Alice's way if they do." Alice let out a laugh. It was short but lit up her face significantly.

As the day wore on both Joey and Alice cheered up considerably, conversation flowing more naturally between us. Joey didn't even protest to letting Alice talk about Derek some more and the things she had loved about him. He remained adamantly tight-lipped about even his _good_ childhood memories of Derek though, refusing to partake in the reminiscing even if he wasn't going to stop Alice, Carol, Jack and Dad doing it.

By the time night had fallen, Alice was practically falling asleep on the spot, not having slept much better than Joey had done. Only protesting once or twice, she eventually agreed to let Joey walk her home to my house where she was still staying.

We made it back to the house within minutes, Alice immediately curling up on the sofa, her duvet wrapped around her.

"Please will you stay with me? Both of you. I don't want to sleep yet," she said timidly, grabbing her brother's wrist before he could leave the room.

Joey looked to me and I nodded encouragingly, smiling at Alice.

"Tell you what, why don't we stick a film on and pig-out on some junk food, yeah?" I asked, liking the sound of my own plan.

Alice nodded at me gratefully and Joey shrugged, throwing himself down onto the sofa next to Alice.

"I'll sort everything out then, shall I?" The incredulousness in my voice only slightly mocking. Part of me wanted to look after them whilst the snarky side of me didn't want Joey to get used to it.

He looked up at me, his trademark cocky smile adorning his face whilst his eyes twinkled lovingly. "Cheers, babe."

"Huh!" I sneered playfully at him, chucking a cushion at his head.

Whilst gathering some snacks together in the kitchen I had a moment of realisation. We'd made it to the end of the first of the two days I'd been dreading and we were still alive, still together and, amazingly, still happy.

I breathed in deeply, praying to heaven that at the end of the day of the hearing we would have the same outcome, that everything wouldn't be ruined.

I made my way back into the living room laden with goods and spread them out in front of us whilst Alice flicked through the channels looking for something good and mindless for us to watch.

I pulled the throw off the back of the sofa and flung it over me and Joey as I sat down, immediately snuggling into his side as one of his arms went around me, the other resting over my ankles. I curled my legs over his more comfily and lay my head against his warm, solid chest.

As Alice reached forward to get some food, Joey leaned down and whispered into my ear softly. "Thanks for today."

I looked up at him, pulling the blanket closer around us. "I didn't really do anything."

"You did, believe me." He pressed a sweet kiss to my nose before sitting back and watching the screen again. I watched his face for a second before smiling slightly and nuzzling my face back into his body.

"Anytime," I whispered against his shirt, knowing he would hear me. He gave my side a squeeze before his fingers resumed gently teasing the slither of skin that had appeared where my top had ridden up under the blanket.

What felt like a billion obstacles down, one more to go. It was either going to be the best start to a new year or the worst.

**A/n**

**Only two more chapters left! Eeee! I didn't want to go on and on about the funeral so I tried to sort of make it detailed but not ****_too_**** detailed at the same time. Hope it was still enjoyable to read. Thank you, as always, for your reviews - you are all wonderful and if I could give you each your very own Joey Branning, I would (but he's mine and I ain't sharing, sorry). ;) See you in a few days!**


	15. Chapter 15

We celebrated New Year fairly quietly; the atmosphere created by Derek's death and the looming hearing putting a damper on everyone's spirits.

We spent the evening watching the fireworks with our friends in the Square gardens, Joey's arms wrapped tightly around my waist from behind, my hands clutching his forearms. At the end of the countdown I turned around and kissed him, winding my arms around his shoulders.

"Happy New Year, babe," Joey whispered, his forehead resting lightly atop mine.

I grinned against his lips, my gloved hands interlinking around the back of his neck. "Happy New Year, Joey."

His lips moved skilfully against mine, kissing me thoroughly. There was an edge to this kiss; like we both knew our time could be limited. It sounded very melodramatic but I saw it more as being realistic and preparing for the worst.

One of his hands pressed into my lower back, his fingers against the ridge of my spine through my coat. I angled myself further into him, deepening our kiss at the same time. I felt my knees weaken as his tongue battled with mine inside my mouth, the sensations created by it spreading to places definitely not suitable for the middle of Albert Square.

A throat cleared behind us and we pulled apart reluctantly, our surroundings coming back into focus.

"Seriously, guys. Public place," Abi said, rolling her eyes at Jay.

I smirked at her, my hands running down Joey's muscular arms before taking his hands and entwining our fingers. "Maybe if you loosened up a bit you and Jay could be the ones being a public menace. I reckon you wouldn't mind so much if it was you being kissed."

Both Abi and Jay looked slightly uncomfortable earning a laugh from everyone around them. "No thanks. I have standards." Abi mumbled.

I flashed a grin at Joey, pushing my forehead once against his bicep before turning back to my sister.

"Have you not got eyes, Abi? I think I'm pretty set with the standards." I wound my arms around one of Joey's, our hands connecting.

"Yeah, shame about the cousins part though," Abi goaded, receiving nothing more than an eye roll from me and, much to my relief, from pretty much everyone else too. My friends had been a lot more supportive than I had ever really anticipated. After the first initial awkward interaction, they all seemed to just accept us as a normal couple.

Fatboy suddenly barked out a laugh, stepping forwards a clapping a hand onto both Lauren and Abi's backs. "Ah, come on now, baby girl. It's all good. It's romantic, ain't it?!"

"I don't see you kissing Poppy like that," Abi bit back, her ego obviously a little bruised.

Fatboy suddenly swung round and pulled Poppy into his arms, smashing his lips against hers. She shrieked out a laugh before throwing her arms around Fatboy's neck and returning the kiss with enthusiasm. They pulled away, grinning and looking thoroughly in love.

"Nah, see, I just wanted to make sure we had an audience," Fatboy taunted playfully, reaching out and bopping Abi gently under the chin with his index finger.

After several more minutes of light-hearted banter, Fatboy, Poppy, Whitney, Lucy, Tyler, Abi and Jay all started to make their way back to The Vic. Me and Joey opted out of returning, instead deciding to just hang out with each other for the rest of the night.

Alice had finally been allowed to move back into what was now her house and so Joey had decided it would be best to move in with her. I had helped moved his stuff over the other day, successfully intervening in the majority of the spats they got themselves into, mostly based on whether or not Alice should look into getting new housemates, rather than Joey. He of course kicked into super protective mode and claimed that if she did that he would never let them in the house.

In all honesty, it's a good thing sex distracts that boy because, if I couldn't lure him away from arguing with Alice with that, I think they would have killed each other by now.

As we turned to head back to the house, we saw Alice walking towards us.

"Hey," she said, smiling as Joey reached out his free arm and wrapped it over her shoulders. "Happy New Year."

"Happy New Year, Al," I replied, glad that she had decided to come out of the house and join in.

"How come you changed your mind, eh?" Joey asked, his tone gentle.

Alice shrugged, watching the last of the fireworks go off over our heads. "Can't stay inside forever, can I? Thought I'd come to the Vic with you guys."

"Oh, we were actually just heading back to the house." I trailed off, feeling guilty now. I looked up at Joey, giving him a look that clearly questioned whether we should just stay for a bit longer.

Before either of us could respond any further, Alice spoke. "It's fine guys, you two go back to the house, I'll hang out with the others."

She didn't look disheartened that we wouldn't be there, a smile still adorning her face, and so I nodded at her, secretly grateful that we would get the house to ourselves for a bit.

Joey leaned down and pressed a kiss to the top of her head. "Alright, but don't walk back by yourself, yeah? Ring me, or get the others to walk back with you."

Alice rolled her eyes as she pulled away, hitching her bag higher up on her shoulder. "Yeah, alright, _Dad_."

I watched apprehensively as both she and Joey froze for a second, the black humour behind Alice's joke sinking in.

"Sorry," she mumbled, shuffling her feet against the floor awkwardly.

"It's fine. I'm just looking out for you." Joey's voice was kind, the arrogant tone that normally got Alice's back up, as well as many other people's, absent from the inflection of his words.

Alice nodded, smiling again. "I know." She leaned forward and gave me a quick hug before waving goodbye. "See you later."

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

"I don't wanna watch this anymore," I said, reaching over Joey and grabbing the remote. I turned the TV off and twisted round to face him, my arms snaking round his neck.

"What do you want to do then?" he asked, his lips mere inches from mine, a slightly knowing smile turning up the corners of his mouth.

"I think you know," I whispered before pressing my lips suggestively against his.

"Sorry, babe, you'll have to enlighten me," he teased, his nose brushing against mine as he tilted his head to the side slightly.

I grinned at him and moved so that I was now straddling his hips. I rested my hands against his muscular shoulders, pushing my fingers under the collar of his shirt. His hands came to rest on my waist, sliding up and down my sides slowly.

"How about I just show you?" I asked, raising one eyebrow at him as I rolled my hips against his, grinding our crotches together. I smirked at him triumphantly as I felt a definite bulge through his jeans.

"I guess that would be alright," he said, attempting nonchalance but giving himself away by the desire in his eyes.

"Only alright? You sure about that?" I ground against him a little harder, my finger nails scraping down the back of his neck lightly. He groaned in response, his lips claiming mine dominantly.

"Definitely not sure," he mumbled against my mouth, pushing my down onto the sofa, his body covering mine completely.

Several minutes later we had somehow managed to remove each other's clothes whilst remaining on the sofa. As each item of clothing was removed our position seemed to change, until I ended up once again straddling his hips.

I tore my lips away from his, gasping for breath and shuddering as his fingers trailed down my spine. I moved myself closer to him, feeling his impressive erection twitch against my stomach.

I rested my hands against his solid pecks, fingers splayed over his skin. His eyes travelled hungrily from my hips where his hands now rested, up over my stomach, lingering over my breasts until they finally lifted to my face.

He leaned up and kissed me softly, his forehead pressing against mine. "You're so beautiful."

I felt his words go straight to my heart, my pulse quickening evermore. In comparison with my previous experiences of being intimate with guys, it was hard to believe that I had settled for anything less than the feelings Joey enticed in me. It was shocking in the best possible way how hard I'd fallen for him in such a short space of time.

"Love you," I whispered, holding his gaze steadily.

"Love you, too, baby. So much." He moved forward and captured my lips once more, groaning as I shifted against him.

His eyes found mine again as I began to lower myself onto him, mewling with both pleasure and pain as my body adjusted to his. His fingers gripped my hips tightly, his lips hovering against mine.

"Ah!" I gasped as he shifted his hips upwards, sheathing himself fully into me.

His hands on my hips guided our rhythm as our mouths battled against each others. My fingers found the back of his neck again, running through the short hairs there and scraping against his skin, causing him to shiver.

We both groaned deeply as I rolled my hips at a different angle, the movement causing him to go deeper than ever into me because of the position we were in. One of his hands slid to my lower back, bringing my body closer into his.

"Fuck, Joey," I spluttered, my voice unsteady with pleasure as he rocked his hips upwards at an angle, causing delicious sensations within me, my orgasm approaching faster and faster. I held myself still for a second, one of my hands sliding down his ripped torso and resting on his firm stomach.

He tipped his hips in the same way and my eyes rolled involuntarily back into my head, a moan issuing from my chest. I caught his gaze, a knowing smirk adorning his lips.

"So fucking sexy." His voice was gravelly, his words slurred slightly.

Our pace increased, both us close to the edge. Our lips found each other's again, our moans muffled. His hand gripped my hip tighter as my hands clenched on his shoulders.

"J-Joey," I whimpered, my eyes wide as I watched him. He reached up one hand and cupped my face as he rolled his hips against one more time.

I felt my orgasm hit hard, pure pleasure coursing through my veins. Joey's orgasm followed mine quickly, his face dropping against my neck, arms going tight around my waist.

We remained basking in post-coital bliss for a little while longer, our chests rising and falling against each others. Eventually Joey stirred from below me, his hands sliding along my sides.

"Hey," he said quietly, tilting his face to mine.

I chuckled breathlessly, pecking his lips softly. "Hey yourself."

"You okay?" he asked, watching me lovingly.

"Do you really need to ask?" I ran my fingers over his cheeks, tracing the line of his jaw with my index finger.

He smiled at me, leaning his face into my hand. He sighed quietly. "As much as I'd love not to move, I really don't want my sister to get home and see us like this."

I laughed, nodding in agreement before moving off him and grabbing his hand, pulling him up off the sofa. He reached down and re-donned his boxers before placing his shirt round my shoulders. I buttoned up a couple of the buttons, pulling my hair out of the collar.

He turned to me, his eyes travelling greedily down my body. "You should wear my clothes more often."

I ran my hand over his chiselled body, the firmness of it still taking my breath away a little. "As long as you wear less, it's fine with me."

He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear softly as I stifled a yawn, tiredness fast-overcoming my brain. I snuggled into his body, his arms going round me in a hug.

"Bed?" he asked, his hand running through my hair.

"Yes, please." I nodded against his chest, my eyes closed.

We heard the front door open suddenly, announcing the Alice's return. She poked her head into the living room, groaning and pulling a face as she took in our attire, or lack of it.

"Ugh, knew I should've just gone straight upstairs," she mumbled, rolling her eyes before waving once and leaving heading to the stairs. "Night, guys."

We both laughed, sending a good night back in her direction before making our way into the hallway.

Reaching the bottom of the stairs I sighed, slouching back against Joey's warm body behind me. "You might have to carry me, make use of those ridiculous arms of yours; don't think I can make it up the stairs."

"Such a bloody drama queen," he chuckled before swinging me swiftly into his arms and carrying me up to bed.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

Two days later, the day of the hearing finally arrived. I had unwillingly stayed at home the night before so that Joey and Uncle Jack could go over their plan for court. Apparently I would have been a distraction had I been there with them, not that that made it any easier to be apart from him when I might not see him again for ages.

My nerves frayed beyond belief, I waited for Dad to wake up and get in the shower before making a break for it, deciding that I had to see Joey before he left.

I banged on Joey's door loudly as soon as I made it to the house, impatience and a horrific feeling of dread racking through me.

The door opened finally, a sleepy looking Joey dressed in only his sweats revealed behind it, one hand rubbing the back of his head.

"Woah, woah, woah," he said as I flung myself at him, his arms going round my waist as he pulled me into the house, closing the door behind me with his foot. He inclined his head towards mine so that his lips were at my ear. "What's wrong, eh?"

I shook my head, breathing in his scent, pressing my face against his chest. "You know exactly what's wrong, Joey."

Joey coaxed my face upwards, encouraging me to look at him. "Babe, it's gonna be fine. Honestly."

I gripped his shoulders, pushing against him slightly. "You don't know that!"

He watched me for a second, holding my gaze, his thumb stroking against my cheek gently. "Maybe not. But I _do_ know that you're imagining it's gonna be a hell of a lot worse than it actually will be."

I sniffed, pursing my lips at him and taking some deep breaths.

He tucked a strand of hair behind my ear comfortingly before speaking softly. "I need you to tone down the drama queen stuff today, yeah? I need you to calm down while I'm gone. Don't go getting yourself into trouble because you've worked yourself up."

"Let me come with you," I implored, pouting at him, moving in closer to his body.

He shook his head slowly, his thumb pressing against my pouted lip. "If you're there like this I'll be more worried about you than I will be about sticking to the story. I can't have you distracting me, babe."

I huffed, stamping my foot a bit. "Ugh, you sound just like Uncle Jack now."

He pressed a kiss to my lips, pulling me tight against his body. "Sorry. But the answer's still no."

I sighed, resigned to my fate for the day and rested my head against his chest.

I heard movement behind us and saw Alice coming down the stairs in her dressing gown. She gave me a sympathetic look, placing a supportive hand on my shoulder before making her way into the kitchen.

"C'mon, I'll make you breakfast, you can stay here with me today," she called over her shoulder.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

Five hours later Dad's car finally pulled up outside the house. My heart felt like it was in my mouth as I watched as he got out of the car. Joey just couldn't be sentenced to jail. He simply couldn't. Not for something _I_ did. Not for something _Derek_ made us do.

I started to feel like I was hyperventilating a little more by the second; last minute, panicked thoughts running through my mind on whether to fess up to everything, not wanting to accept that it was too late now anyway.

The passenger seat door opened suddenly and Joey stepped out of the car. I felt like I couldn't remember how to breathe. Alice smiled encouragingly at me from her position next to me at the window as she saw her brother. I tried to pull in a deep breath, trying to tame my nerves, trying to take in the fact that he was back.

However the momentary relief I had felt upon seeing Joey was short-lived when I saw the expression on their faces. Both Dad and Joey looked grim, definitely not carrying the air of success.

They stopped at the garden gate, Dad clamping a hand on Joey's shoulder, his expression sorrowful.

I saw the words "I'm sorry" leave his lips before a strangled sob left my lips and I sunk to the floor, the world going black.

**A/n**

**Naughty cliff hanger. Whoops!**

**So, I apologise for the long wait for this chapter, life just got in the way of finishing it m'afraid. I hope it was worth the wait anyhoo.**

**I would also like to point out that I wrote the beginning bit of this chapter with Fatboy &co. in it aaaages before the EE episode the other night with a very similar situation in it. Clearly this is a sign that EE should just employ me already. ;)**

**Thank you so much for your reviews, they are much appreciated and loved. See you in a few days. :)**


	16. Chapter 16

I next thing I was aware of was the sound of voices and the feel of someone's hands cradling my face. I was slumped against the wall, my legs curled underneath me.

"What the hell happened?" Joey's voice came from right in front of me; it was obviously him supporting my head gently.

"I'm not really sure to be honest. I think she forgot to breathe. She didn't really faint, it was more like collapse," Alice explained from next to me. "I'm pretty sure she was still conscious 'cause she was mumbling."

I tried to remember what I had mumbled but I couldn't. She was probably right about the not breathing part though; sounded like something I would do.

Joey's fingers softly tucked a strand of my hair behind my ear and I shivered a little, sensing him move a bit closer to me.

"Why would she forget to breathe, Alice?" Joey asked, sounding confused.

"She was panicking about you. She saw your expression when you got out of the car and just lost it a bit. She said something about having ruined your life." Alice paused for a second before continuing. "I take it from your eye roll and expression now that that isn't the case?"

My breath hitched in my throat, a small stem of hope blossoming in my heart. I turned my head slightly in Joey's hands, pressing my cheek against his skin.

"Lauren?" Joey coaxed quietly, his thumbs stroking my cheeks. "Baby, open your eyes for me."

I took a deep breath before willing my eyelids to move. My gaze found his as my hand reached up to grasp one of his, entwining his fingers with mine.

"Hey," he said, his forehead falling onto mine gently.

"Hey," I croaked back feebly, shifting my legs so as to get comfier.

Joey pulled back from me, his expression intense, a very small smile curling up the corners of his mouth. I felt myself start to hope a little bit more. Surely he wouldn't be smiling if it was bad news? But then why had he looked so defeated only moments ago?

"What am I gonna do with you, eh?" He sighed, squeezing my hand before bringing it to his lips and pressing a kiss to my knuckles. "I thought I told you to tone down the whole drama queen thing for today."

I looked up at him from under my eyelashes, trying to discern what had happened from his countenance. He didn't look upset anymore, in fact, he looked rather happy and amused. I sniffed, gripping his hand in mine, urging him to stop keeping me in the dark.

"So?" I prodded a little more viciously than I had intended. The lack of information was starting to irritate me big time.

Joey pulled me up into a standing position, his arms going round my waist tightly. I snuggled into his body automatically, revelling in the safety of being in his arms again, my hands connecting around his neck. He looked down at me seriously before speaking.

"I lost my license for a year," he said simply. When it became clear that he wasn't going to say anything else I tilted my head at him, my hands coming to rest on his shoulders.

"What...that's it?" My voice was a bit shaky, desperately hoping that this wasn't some sort of wind up.

He gave me a look as if to say why are you asking me that? "Are you disappointed or something?" he joked, nudging my side with his arm.

"N-no! Of course I'm not bloody disappointed, Joey!" I stepped back, pulling out of his embrace, my hands going to my hips.

"What's the matter then, eh?" He took a step towards me, his hands finding my waist again, one eyebrow raised in amused incredulity.

I opened my mouth and closed it again, delayed shock and jubilation flooding through me at an alarming rate. I took in his relieved expression and those incredibly attractive dimples showing on his face because of his smile.

He wasn't leaving. He wasn't going to jail. I hadn't ruined his life. We could still be together. I didn't know which thought to focus on. I almost felt dizzy again from the relief.

I moved closer to him again, my hands finding his broad chest and shoving him a little, to no avail of course. "Then what was all that about when you were getting out of the car?! I was terrified! I thought you were going to prison!"

He reached out and cupped my face gently, a smile still turning up his lips. "Hey, hey." He held my face still, holding my gaze intensely. "I'm sorry, babe. I didn't know you were watching. We were talking about Derek, not my hearing."

I stared at him, breathing heavily. He moved in close to me, lips hovering above mine. I breathed in his scent, my fingers grasping the lapels of his jacket.

"So, you're really staying?" I asked, looking up at him shyly.

He smiled, nodding. "I'm really staying."

I leaned in even closer, pulling him towards me, his lips ghosting over mine. One of his hands slid down my side, pressing into the small of my back.

"We can actually be together?" I questioned, disbelief colouring my tone.

He laughed lightly, his finger tracing a line over my cheek. "Yes, baby."

"Love you," I whispered, sliding my hands over his shoulders.

"Love you, too." His lips closed the minute gap between us, moving against mine tenderly. His hand on my back pulled my body infinitely closer into his to the point where I was almost bent at an angle. I released a muffled moan from the back of my throat as his tongue ran along my top lip, searching for entrance into my mouth.

"Err, I _am_ still in the room guys," Alice suddenly interrupted, her tone sounding somewhere between disgust and humour.

I looked round at her, Joey's forehead pressing into the side of my head as I did so. "Well, you know where the door is, Al," I said jokingly, winking at her.

She smiled at me despite herself, shaking her head a little. "Charming!"

Joey then stood up straight, keeping one arm round my waist as he turned to face his sister, smiling unapologetically.

"I'm glad everything's okay, Joey," Alice said, walking towards Joey and giving him a quick hug which he reciprocated with his free arm. "Don't know what I'd do without my stupid older brother."

Alice pecked a kiss to his cheek, grinning. "We should go out, celebrate!" Without waiting for an agreement from either of us she left the room, exclaiming that she was gonna go ring their mum.

I pulled Joey's face back to mine as soon as the door was closed behind Alice, claiming his lips once more in another crushing kiss. His fingers tangled in my hair as they cupped my head , no space whatsoever between us.

"I agree that we should celebrate," I mumbled, pecking kisses along Joey's jaw line. "But what I had in mine only really involved the two of us."

"Mmm." One of Joey's trailed down my spine slowly, his fingers teasing the slither of skin on show at the hem of my top where it had ridden up. "Think I like the sound of your way better."

"You should," I said, my fingers sliding under his shirt over the light dusting of dark hair on his solid chest. Joey chuckled, grinning at me, his forehead falling onto mine softly.

We remained in silence for a moment, enjoying being with each other, basking in the relief that Joey wasn't going to prison. Life could actually go on; we'd, made it through those horrendous last few weeks and had come out the other side stronger. It was an overwhelming thought to say the least.

I looked up at Joey, catching his gaze. "I haven't said it nearly as much as I should've done, but I want you to know how grateful I am that you did what you did for me today."

Joey stroked a fingertip over my face once more, his eyes intense and loving. "I couldn't lose you, Lauren. I love you too much to lose you."

I kissed him once, my lips lingering on his. "Well that's good, 'cause you ain't getting rid of me now. I'm never gonna want to let you go."

"Wouldn't want it any other way, babe" he replied, bringing my face back to his.

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

I looked at myself in the mirror, checking my hair for one last time. I had donned my favourite, long-sleeved, body-hugging, little black dress which came to the top of my thighs and some dark blue wedge heels for our celebratory night out. Alice had curled my hair for me and done my makeup before leaving early to round up the others. I looked pretty good, if I did say so myself.

Now that we'd got ready I was actually pretty excited to go out. It would be nice to let our hair down and truly celebrate something at last, seeing as over the holidays we hadn't really had a chance to do so properly.

I grabbed my bag and made my way downstairs in search of Joey. I poked my head in the living room which was empty, the remains of our pizza takeaway still sitting on the coffee table.

"Joey?" I called as I made my way towards the kitchen, pulling a face when I found it empty too.

Dropping my bag onto the table, I took out my phone and began to text Alice to tell her we'd be on our way in a minute when I felt a pair of strong arms go around my waist.

Joey's lips went to my ear, his shoulders curling over mine as he pulled me back into his solid body. His hands splayed strongly on my stomach, my own curling over his forearms in surprise.

"Are you trying to kill me?" he snarled into my ear. His lips travelled down my neck, sucking my skin into his mouth and making my eyes roll back into my head.

"What?" I breathed, turning my face towards him and groaning as his lips reached a particularly sweet spot on my neck.

"That dress." One of his hands slid down to the hem of my dress, gripping the bare skin of my thigh tightly. "You cannot seriously expect me to go out and share you with the world looking this fucking amazing."

I turned in his arms, smirking as I took in how good he himself looked in his shirt. I gripped his collar, levelling his gaze and rolling my hips against his. My smirk grew as he groaned, his hands coming to grip my waist.

"Oh, but, I thought you liked a challenge, Joseph?" I teased, trying to sound as innocent as possible.

He growled a little from the back of his throat, his hips pushing me back into the edge of the table. He gripped my waist even tighter, lifting me roughly and placing me on the table top, his body moving to stand between my legs.

"You know what else I like?" he asked, his lips moving against mine briefly before pulling back to look at me.

"What's that?" I ran my hands down his chest greedily, my nails scraping along the front his shirt.

His hands caught my thighs, pulling my legs around his waist before leaning over me and bracing his hands on the table either side of me.

"Making good on my promises," he said shortly, his eyes dark with lust.

I leaned back on one of my hands as he moved in closer to me, the other hand clutching at the back of his neck.

"And what promise would that be then?" I asked, clinging to the last of my composure as his crotch pressed against mine.

He smirked at me cockily before answering. "I believe I owe you a demonstration of how good I am in the kitchen."

My breath hitched in my throat, the memory of his promise stoking the fire already burning within me. A small voice in the back of my head lamented the fact that the time spent getting ready was about to be ruined but it was silenced as Joey's lips attacked my neck with new vigour.

"Better make it good then, eh?" I managed to choke out before his lips travelled upwards and claimed mine dominantly.

I had thought the need between us might dissipate a bit knowing that our time was no longer limited but, instead, it seemed stronger and more all-consuming than ever.

Never letting me leave my perch on the table top, Joey's hands and mouth worked me up into a desperate frenzy. Peeling my dress off my body, his lips followed its path, dragging down my skin torturously, only coming to a stop just below my belly button where he pressed a hot, open-mouthed kiss.

Straightening up he leaned over me again, re-claiming my lips as I pushed his shirt off his shoulders, the muscles of his stomach rippling into my fingers as they dipped below the waistline of his jeans.

His lips never leaving mine, he ran a hand down over my breasts, over my abdomen, circling over my hipbones before tracing a finger over my folds. I bucked against him inadvertently, my lips breaking from his, gasping.

"You're so wet," he pondered, his voice gravelly.

Another minute of teasing later and I was already practically unravelling under his ministrations.

"Joey, please," I croaked as his erection slid against my centre, my arms winding around his neck as I brought his lips back to mine.

His arms hooked under my thighs, hands splayed on my lower back, he pushed into me slowly, both of us shuddering at the sensation.

It didn't take long for us to both be nearing the edge, Joey's thrusts becoming harder and faster, my hands clawing at his muscular back.

"Ah, Joey." My voice was strangled, my legs hooking tighter around his waist as I tried to hold off my release for a little bit longer.

Joey pushed his forehead against mine, breathing heavily, driving deeper still into me. "Come for me, baby."

I scraped my fingers down the back of his neck, my lips meeting his as I came undone, my orgasm racking through me in overwhelming waves. Feeling me clench around him, Joey found his release too, growling into the underside of my jaw, hands gripping my waist tightly.

My head fell to his chest, my fingers trailing down his spine lazily as we both caught back our breath.

I pressed a kiss over his heart softly, shivering as his fingers rubbed my neck firmly.

"Love you, Joey," I whispered, looking up at him.

He smiled at me, his fingers finding the love heart pendant lying around my neck that he had bought me for Christmas. "Love you too, Lauren. So much."

/./././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././././

Half an hour later we finally made it to the R&R, the first time I'd been in it since the night Joey had tried to deny, for the last time, that he didn't love me and that we couldn't be together. The difference between then and now was startling to say the least.

As we walked in I felt Joey's arm go tighter around my waist in an unmistakeably protective and possessive move. I rolled my eyes, grinning and snuggling closer into his body.

"Where were you guys?!" Alice exclaimed as we reached our group of friends, her arms flinging up in the air dramatically and almost knocking her drink over. By the looks of things she hadn't waited for us to start celebrating.

I cleared my throat as I ran my fingers through my hair once again, straightening up my dress, still convinced that I looked dishevelled. I heard Joey snigger beside me and Alice wrinkled her nose, comprehension dawning on her face. "Ugh, d'you know what? I don't even want to know."

We both laughed, sliding into the booth. Joey pulled me onto his lap immediately, his arms going around my waist, hands on my stomach.

As the conversation sparked up around us, Joey's lips occasionally pressed kisses to the back of my neck, his fingers brushing along my side, my heart skipping a beat each time.

I leant back into him, relishing in the fact that we were here, not hiding our relationship, no one trying to break us up, no threats hanging over our heads. For the first time in a very long time I felt truly happy.

Life wasn't perfect; it never would be. But for now at least, I had all I wanted.

**The End**

**A/n**

**So, they finally got their Happily Ever After (and their kitchen sex, ha) - did you honestly think I'd let Joey go to prison? What a waste that would be. :P I hope you enjoyed the last chapter and didn't find it a disappointing end.**

**I'm genuinely sad to finish this story and I know some of you would prefer me to continue for a bit longer but as it was only ever meant to be an adaptation of their story over Christmas, I feel it's the right time to leave it. I would like to thank you all SO very much for your amazing support, astounding interest and lovely reviews for this story. It means so much to me and makes it worth all the writing. You guys are seriously amazing.**

**I'll hopefully be starting a new story in the near future, so keep a look out if you liked this one. :)**

**Sally (disarranging) x**


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